Shooting reported at Omaha Target; police said they killed suspect

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT/Gray News) - Dozens of police officers were dispatched to a Target in Nebraska after reports of shots fired in the store Tuesday.

In an afternoon news conference, Omaha police said that a man in his 30s walked into the Target and began firing an AR-15.

Police responded quickly and shot the suspect.

Police Chief Todd Schmaderer said the man had “plenty of ammunition” and that evidence suggests he fired multiple rounds, but it wasn’t immediately known if he fired at anyone.

Schmaderer said no wounded people were found, and police had searched through the store “because there were some people hiding in there.” Police said no victims from the scene have gone to area hospitals.

FBI personnel were seen checking cars in the parking lot.

Schmaderer praised the swift response from authorities.

“When you have a mass shooter in your city you want a massive response like this,” Schmaderer said.

Remus Smolksy said he saw people running out of the store, including a woman and her two children, when an employee told him there was a shooter.

“I went in and I looked left down at the frozen area and I looked right all the way down to the other end of the store I could see and I couldn’t see anyone else in there. That’s when I heard something else that sounded like a shotgun,” he said.

Cathy Mahannah, a customer, said the scene inside the store was “sheer panic.”

The 62-year-old was near the store’s entrance picking out Valentine’s Day gifts for her young grandchildren when she heard a banging sound. She thought something had fallen, then saw a mass of people running for the exit.

A shopper told her there was an active shooter, and she fled. She heard at least one more shot in the store and a few more when she was outside.

Mahannah was so rattled she initially couldn’t find her car and jumped into a vehicle with a stranger.

“The moments in that parking lot were terrifying when I heard the shots and thought, ‘Where do I hide? I don’t know what to do.’” she said.

Target said the store will remain closed until further notice, but employees will still be paid and on-site counseling will be made available.

The store also said it would work with Omaha police to allow shoppers to retrieve personal property they may have left in the store or in the parking lot.

Copyright 2023 WOWT via Gray Media Group, Inc. The Associated Press contributed to the report. All rights reserved.