Omaha Police have identified the woman killed in an attempted kidnapping incident at Walmart on Tuesday morning.

A release from OPD identified the woman killed in the shooting as 31-year-old Noemi Guzman.

Two years ago, she was arrested after her father’s home was set on fire and was also accused of breaking into a church rectory in South Omaha. Guzman was found not guilty by reason of insanity, and assigned a treatment plan in 2025.

She was scheduled for an annual review on June 12.

OPD confirmed that no officers were injured in the incident, which started around 9:15 a.m. Tuesday at Walmart near 72nd and Pine streets.

According to OPD, officers immediately began to approach Guzman, who had the 3-year-old boy in the seat of the shopping cart.

After multiple commands to drop the knife, Guzman began to cut the boy. The officers then both fired their patrol weapons into Guzman.

Immediately after the shooting, the boy’s guardian, along with a bystander, were able to remove the child from the cart and render aid. The boy was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Also after the shooting, officers attempted life-saving measures on Guzman, but she was declared dead at the scene.

OPD says surveillance video showed Guzman shoplifted a large kitchen knife, approached the guardian and the child forced the guardian to walk in front of the cart while Guzman took control of the cart and directed both of them to the parking lot.

Officers intercepted Guzman shortly after she, the child, and the guardian were exiting the store and making their way east toward the parking lot entrance.

OPD says the officers involved in the incident have been placed on paid critical incident leave, and will be interviewed at a later date, per department policy.

The investigation into the shooting remains ongoing, with the Omaha Police Department Officer-Involved Investigations Team being assisted by the Nebraska State Patrol, and Douglas and Sarpy County Sheriff’s Offices.

“The responding officers acted with professionalism and direct action to intervene and save a child’s life,” said Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer. “The community can be reassured in knowing that Omaha police officers stand ready to act with courage and decisiveness in the most serious situations to protect the public.”

Omaha Mayor John Ewing shared this statement in the wake of OPD’s release:

OPD Deputy Chief Scott Gray gave an initial update at the scene around 11 a.m., updating reporters on the status of the child and the circumstances of the incident.

“There is no threat to the public,” an OPD tweet sent at 10:55 a.m. says.

In his update, Gray said the Walmart was empty and investigators were working to find out what circumstances led up to the incident.

Walmart shared this statement with First Alert 6 just before 3 p.m.: “Violence like this is unacceptable. We’re working with police and supporting them in their investigation.”

Traffic around the area was impacted for about an hour, with OPD tweeting just after 11 a.m. that 72nd Street was open but Walmart was not.

Around 2:50 p.m., First Alert 6 observed that the Walmart seemed to have re-opened. The corporate office told First Alert 6 that if the store didn’t reopen by 5 p.m., patients needing to pick up prescriptions at that location would be alerted to pick them at the next closest Walmart pharmacy location.