Douglas County reports rise in violent vape-related crimes, including multiple homicides

OMAHA, Neb. —

Douglas County officials are reporting an increase in vape-related crimes, including two homicides in less than a year, with concerns about youth access to firearms and the high value of vapes.

Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine said his office has seen two homicides involving vapes at the center of the cases. In December, Kashmiere Burse was arrested for multiple felonies, including first-degree murder, in the shooting death of 18-year-old Darren Greer.

“I use the term it’s a vape rip-off or a vape robbery. Somebody’s got a bag of vapes. They set up a deal to somebody in exchange, and there’s guns involved,” Kleine said.

READ MORE: Omaha police arrest 19-year-old in connection to deadly shooting

Court records show Burse told investigators the plan was to buy vape cartridges from Greer.

In May, 18-year-old Joseph Baha was found shot to death in his car. The suspects in that case were two young teenagers.

“And sometimes that’s even hard to comprehend, especially with somebody who’s 14, 15 years old. But it’s happening,” Kleine said.

Previous coverage: Omaha police investigating homicide after body found in vehicle with apparent gunshot wounds

Kleine said the motive in that case was also to steal vapes, noting that these robberies are becoming more frequent and involve significant amounts of money.

“They stole either $4,000 worth of vapes or $11,000 worth of vapes,” he said.

Kleine also said his office has filed cases involving students possessing vapes in schools.

“Most of them are the nicotine ones. 118, 65 of them are the THC,” Kleine said.

School resource officer Wade Gilmer with the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office said vape use is prevalent across schools.

“We do see quite a bit of vapes coming through, just all schools in general. It’s not just a certain district,” Gilmer said.

Gilmer explained that access to vapes is often easy for students.

“When I talk to most of the kids, where did you get it from? I just went to the store, and I bought it, and nobody carded me or anything,” he said.

However, Gilmer noted that from his perspective, vape-related issues in schools appear to be decreasing.

“I think last year I averaged four in my location. And I think that’s been that’s continued stat with most of our SROs at our department,” he said.

Kleine said the rise in violence tied to vapes highlights the need for broader discussions.

“Part of it’s the access to firearms by a 14-year-old, part of it’s the question about why, and I think, I think that’s why we need to get to the source and cut that off,” he said.

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