Man sought in Nebraska homicide, armed carjacking shot and killed by police in Iowa
Jul 9, 2023, 8:42 AM
COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — A man sought in connection with a fatal shooting and an armed carjacking in Nebraska was shot and killed by police officers in Iowa following a chase.
Police in Omaha, Nebraska, responded to a domestic assault call before 6 a.m. Saturday and learned that 41-year-old Matthew Briggs had broken into a home and assaulted a woman, police said in a news release. She was able to escape.
Minutes later, police learned that Briggs drove his car through the garage door of a home nearby. The woman who lived there wasn’t home but Briggs shot at a neighbor who came over to check on him, police said. The neighbor was unhurt.
Around 7 a.m., police were called to a third home and found 52-year-old Steven Donsbach shot to death. Briggs was named as a person of interest.
On Saturday afternoon, a Toyota Camry was carjacked in suburban Omaha by a man matching Briggs’ description. Officers spotted the car and a pursuit began.
The chase crossed into Iowa. In Council Bluff, the Toyota crashed and two officers — one from Omaha and one from Council Bluffs — shot Briggs. He died at a hospital. Omaha police did not say what prompted the shooting, but said two guns were found in the stolen car Briggs was driving.
Both officers are on paid administrative pending an investigation by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.
