The knife-wielding wannabe kidnapper who viciously slashed a 3-year-old boy outside a Nebraska Walmart has had troubling bouts of violence and mental illness – including taking a blade to her father and drenching him in lighter fluid.
Noemi Guzman, who was gunned down by police after knifing the tot Tuesday morning, allegedly broke into an Omaha church and threatened to kill a priest after stabbing her father and trying to set his house ablaze during a maniacal rampage in 2024, Omaha police said.
The 31-year-old unleashed her twisted attack the morning of March 3, 2024, dousing her father, Octavio, in flammable liquid and slashing him with a knife before trying to light the house ablaze.
Guzman then stormed into St. Frances Cabrini Church less than an hour later, allegedly trashing the rectory while wielding a knife as a terrified priest barricaded himself in an upstairs room and called the cops, Omaha police said at the time.
She proceeded to barrel her way into the priest’s room while firefighters were rescuing him from the rectory with a ladder truck.
“Whatever room he was in, she busted through that room just as they were extracting [him] on that ladder truck,” Lt. Jake Ritonya told KETV at the time, calling the incident a “mental health crisis.”
“And then she was armed with a knife. So obviously it could have gone very bad.”
Guzman barricaded herself in the church – then allegedly blasted bear spray at cops as they tried to contact her before grabbing her.
Following her arrest, she was later freed on four felony charges.
A judge found her not responsible by reason of insanity on charges of second-degree assault, first-degree arson, burglary and criminal mischief, according to the Omaha World-Herald.
She was ordered to remain on medication and continue seeing a psychiatrist.
Guzman was also convicted for assaulting a woman in 2018. She was sentenced to two years of probation but released after five months due to good behavior.
During Tuesday’s incident, police said she allegedly swiped a knife inside an Omaha Walmart and confronted the 3-year-old and a caretaker before forcing them through the aisles and into the parking lot.
When cops arrived, Guzman continued to make threats with the knife and — after ignoring several pleas from officers to drop the weapon — slashed the boy across the left side of his face and on his hand, authorities said.
Harrowing body camera footage captured a wide-eyed Guzman holding the large knife up near the boy’s face just as cops drew their guns and fired.
Guzman died at the scene.
The injured child, Cyler Hillman, was rushed to a local hospital and is reportedly recovering with his family.
