Aldrick Scott’s lawyers to ask county to unseal investigation documents

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - Lawyers for the man suspected of kidnapping an Omaha woman later found dead are planning to ask a judge to unseal documents in his case.

The public defender for Aldrick Scott, who remains in the Douglas County Jail on a $10 million bond, will ask a county judge next week to unseal the warrants and affidavits in his case.

These are the documents the state uses to establish probable cause; typically, they spell out some of the evidence.

That’s how detectives were able to search Cari Allen’s home and car and examine Scott’s cell phone information to see where he had been — among other things that we don’t yet know.

Legal experts told 6 News that it’s not automatic that a judge will unseal those documents just yet as judges will sometimes keep these types of documents sealed if they need to protect a minor or witness — or if it’s still part of an ongoing investigation.

It’s not yet clear whether any of that is germane, other than the ongoing investigation. That’s because last week, Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine told 6 News that investigators are still piecing together the autopsy to determine the cause of Allen’s death, and whether there’s evidence to increase the charges.

Detectives are also trying to figure out certain aspects of the timeline: How did she get to Topeka? And did Scott have help getting out of the country?

He was captured in Central America working at a BBQ restaurant. He had altered his appearance somewhat, shaving his head and trimming his beard.

Allen disappeared the weekend before Thanksgiving. Investigators said the first sign of alarm was when she stopped texting her son. Her body was found a week ago — 150 miles south of the Omaha-metro, in Topeka, Kan. That’s where 47-year-old Scott, her ex-boyfriend, lives.

During Scott’s court appearance, investigators said Allen had broken off the relationship with him in early November.

Deputies found bullet holes in her northwest Omaha home. They had been patched, but not painted. Authorities towed her car, which was parked in the garage.

Around the time Allen went missing, detectives said Scott told them he was at home in Kansas. But investigators said cellphone data put him in Omaha near the bar where Allen had been that night. That prompted the Douglas County Attorney to bring kidnapping charges against Scott.

But that charge was filed before her body was found.

The Douglas County Public Defender representing Scott filed a motion this week asking the judge to unseal warrants and affidavits in the case. She said the state has “not put forth good cause to seal the affidavit...” and that the constitution mandates the defendant be given the information “to know what is the basis for the charges.”

The hearing to ask the judge to unseal the documents is next Wednesday. Eventually, all these documents will be unsealed before trial, but we are months away from that.

For the sake of argument, if the county attorney doesn’t upgrade charges, a conviction for kidnapping carries a prison sentence of 40 years to life in Nebraska.

Copyright 2022 WOWT. All rights reserved.