Nearly 10 years after Omaha man was shot and killed outside his grandmother's house, arrests made

OMAHA, Neb. — Nearly 10 years after 29-year-old Markell Brewer was shot and killed outside his grandmother's house near 31st and Decatur Street in Omaha, police have made arrests in the case.

According to Omaha Police, 30-year-old Destin Martinez and 30-year-old Percy Eubanks are charged with first-degree murder. Brewer's family says he did not know either of them and they do not know why he was killed.

For Markell's family, news of the arrest brought a flood of emotions — happiness, sadness, anger, and confusion.

While an arrest may bring a sense of accountability, his loved ones say it does not bring him back.

Markell's sister, Markira Brewer, says the last 10 years without her brother has left an emptiness in the family.

"So when he passed away, certain things kind of just fell apart."

Brewer says Markell was most proud of being a father — a role he embraced with pride.

"He was a great person overall. He was always happy. In these pictures. He's always smiling, the biggest smile, always laughing, the joker of the family. He's the person who taught a lot of us morals."

For years, Markell's family was left with questions and the pain of not knowing whether his case would ever be solved. Brewer says detectives continued to stay in contact with her mother over the years, making sure the family knew the investigation had not been forgotten.

As weeks turned to months and months turned to years, Brewer says the family never lost hope. She shared this message for families of cold cases:

"I would like to say to keep hope, but hope is also hard to have because it makes you think about it every day. And that's hard to also do. But to just try to create peace within yourself no matter what the situation is. Because... that's honestly the only way to get through. Because even if things do end up being solved, that doesn't make everything, okay."

Affidavits for both men are sealed. They are due back in court next month.

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