Lincoln man sentenced to prison for shooting DHHS caseworker

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – A Lincoln man was sentenced Monday for shooting a Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services caseworker last year.

Lancaster County District Judge Kevin McManaman sentenced Brent Lopez, 38, to at least 25 years in prison, according to court records.

He was found guilty of first-degree assault, attempted first-degree assault, two counts of use of a weapon to commit a felony and two counts of third-degree assault.

On Sept. 26, two DHHS child welfare workers went to Lopez’s home in the North Bottoms neighborhood.

As they approached the home near Seventh and Y streets, Lopez opened the front door and fired at them, court documents say.

One of the case workers was shot in the thigh and buttocks, according to police.

His injuries were not life-threatening.

SEE ALSO: Lincoln police say DHHS workers knew the man might be armed before shooting

Lopez told caseworkers he shot them because he thought “they were police,” an arrest affidavit said.

Officers visited Lopez’s home earlier that day based on a welfare check requested by the mother of his children.

Lopez posted a video of the interaction on YouTube. In it, he said he felt threatened by an “angry mob”.

Two days before the shooting, Lopez was fired from the Air Park Rec Center after hitting two teenagers.

SEE ALSO: A Lincoln Recreation Center employee cited in altercation with two teenagers, police said