Larry Darnell Thompson was a 59-year-old Black man and a father living in Omaha, Nebraska. His life was cut short by an act of sudden violence in the spring of 2021.
On the evening of Friday, March 12, 2021, Mr. Thompson was sitting on the porch of his home in North Omaha. At about 8:15 p.m., Omaha police responded to a Shotspotter activation in the 3200 block of North 28th Avenue. Officers arrived to find Mr. Thompson suffering from gunshot injuries.
He was transported by ambulance to the Nebraska Medical Center, where he succumbed to his injuries. His death was ruled a homicide.
Homicide detectives began an investigation and reviewed surveillance video from the Omaha Housing Authority. The footage showed a black Chevy Cruze circling the neighborhood three times before parking. Three individuals exited the car, ran toward Mr. Thompson, and shot him before fleeing. A detective later testified that Mr. Thompson had been shot seven times. Investigators traced the vehicle to the parents of a teenager, Christopher Trejo. Data recovered from Trejo’s phone reportedly revealed messages with another teen, Dech Gach, in which they discussed guns and their plan. According to testimony, Gach, Trejo, and a third teen, Gatluak Jiel, drove from Sioux City, Iowa, to Omaha with the intention of shooting someone, driving around for hours before randomly selecting Mr. Thompson.
The investigation led to the arrests of three teenagers. Christopher Trejo was arrested in connection with the homicide. In June 2022, police obtained felony arrest warrants for Dech Gach, 16, and Gatluak Jiel, 15. With assistance from U.S. Marshals task forces in Iowa and Arizona, both were taken into custody. Gach was charged as an adult with first-degree murder, criminal conspiracy, and use of a firearm to commit a felony. Jiel was charged with first-degree murder, criminal conspiracy, and use of a weapon to commit a felony.
In September 2022, Christopher Trejo, then 17, pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree murder. As part of his plea agreement, prosecutors dropped two other felony charges, and he was awaiting sentencing. As of that month, Dech Gach was set to stand trial on his charges. Gatluak Jiel was also awaiting trial, and his public defender had filed a motion to transfer his case to juvenile court.
