Violent Crime Climbs in Lincoln
by Olivia White
LINCOLN – Violent crime saw an uptick during the first month of the year, according to the Lincoln Police Department’s (LPD) monthly crime statistics. Lincoln has seen a rise in violent crime cases in recent weeks, with an increase of 13 percent year-to-date, with 89 total cases.
Violent crime is categorized as rape, robbery, aggravated assault, and murder.
In January, the number of cases categorized as aggravated assault increased, with a total of 59 cases – a slight rise from December, which had 55 cases. January produced 23 rape cases, three more than the previous month, and robbery was the same in both months, with five cases each.
December had one murder case, and January’s murder count currently sits at zero. Overall, it was a seven percent increase from December to January, but a 13 percent increase from YTD 2025 to YTD 2026 and a 16% over the 5-year average YTD.
New Murder Cases
Since 2020, Lincoln has averaged around eight homicides a year.
The lone murder case in December occurred on December 4th when 24-year-old Jarell Wheeler was shot by his brother, 23-year-old Emanuel Greenwalt-Claypool, at the Casey’s General Store at 13th and ‘E’. Claypool also struck a bystander during the shooting. Both victims received first aid from the arriving officers before Lincoln Fire and Rescue took over to perform life-saving measures.
The second victim was struck twice but quickly released from the hospital and is expected to recover. Claypool remained at the crime scene and cooperated with the investigation. He was arrested for second-degree murder, use of a firearm to commit a felony, and second-degree assault.
Most recently, the case of 26-year-old Hannah Neville, who was a 32-week pregnant mother, and Robert Tanner has taken over headlines as both have gone missing. Neville was reported missing on January 28, and Tanner’s report was filed the following day. They had not been seen since January 15, and investigators now believe they were killed that night.
Tanner’s half-brother and his wife, 24-year-old Sterling James and 22-year-old Sayde Titus, were arrested in connection with the disappearance, James on two counts of murder in the first-degree and Titus on two counts of aiding and abetting first-degree murder.
The victims lived in Stromsburg, but investigators believe Neville came to Lincoln to pick up her husband just before 7 p.m. on January 15 from James and Titus’s apartment in west Lincoln.
Police responded to a vehicle fire near 39th and Cornhusker just after 12:30 a.m. on January 16 that was later determined to be Neville’s SUV. Officers attempted to contact her that morning to inform her of the incident, but her number did not go through. LPD said they now believe that was because she was likely already deceased.
On February 1, James admitted to shooting Neville and Tanner, and LPD believes he buried their bodies and set fire to Hannah’s SUV with Titus assisting after their murders. They were both taken into custody at their home. The bodies’ locations were not revealed, and the motive has not yet been determined.
LPD informed the public on February 5 that it had recovered human remains in an area of interest in Saunders County. They have not confirmed the number of individuals or their identities as LPD awaits DNA or dental records.
Lincoln Police Department Responds
The LPD said that while crime is up this year, overall, it is a small increase in case numbers.
“While violent crime is up 13% YTD, that reflects a relatively modest increase in actual case numbers when dealing with smaller base figures, in this circumstance, an increase of 10 cases from YTD 2025 to YTD 2026,” said Erika Thomas, a spokeswoman for LPD.
Thomas said as part of LPD’s data-driven approach to policing, the Crime Analysis Unit reviews all reports to identify crime patterns by analyzing people, patterns, places, and problems; and this data is then shared with the public on their website with weekly statistics, a searchable database, and an open data portal.
“We monitor crime trends closely and adjust our patrol strategies accordingly,” Thomas said. “LPD also works tirelessly on crime prevention through various avenues, including community engagement and outreach, social media campaigns, educating the public, and neighborhood watch groups.”
The LPD said they plan on sharing more details about the 2025 crime statistics during their annual news conference. Violent crime is the only section in the latest city statistics that has seen an overall increase, with property crimes and miscellaneous crimes lower than this time last year.
— Olivia White is a freelance reporter with The Plains Sentinel. She previously was a staff writer for The Northside Sun.
Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to reflect further information from LPD.
