Investigation concludes in Hays Police Sgt. killing

Ellis County Attorney's Office

As of Dec. 12, 2025, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation has concluded its investigation of the murder of Hays Police Department Sergeant Scott Heimann that occurred on Sept. 28th, 2025. The investigative report included over 100 reports from various law enforcement agencies, photo evidence, and multiple hours of audio and video discovery.

Based on review of all provided discovery, Ellis County Attorney Aaron Cunningham has composed a comprehensive summation of what occurred during the weekend of Sept. 26-28, 2025, concerning the murder of Sergeant Scott Heimann. The investigation also included evidence from the aggravated battery/attempted murder incident that occurred on Sept. 27, 2025, with the same suspect and an ex-girlfriend. What follows is what the Ellis County Attorney’s Office can release at this time.

On Friday, Sept. 26, 2025, suspect Zane Wickham attempted to make contact with an ex-girlfriend in a harassing manner. The following morning, Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025, Wickham began messaging the ex-girlfriend again throughout the day, informing her he was suicidal and threatening to come to her house uninvited.

At 7:15 p.m., Wickham showed up to the ex-girlfriend’s residence and can be observed on doorbell camera footage standing on the porch with a semi-automatic handgun. Wickham attempted to force his way into the victim’s residence after discovering her front door was locked. The ex-girlfriend, who was inside the house, spoke to Wickham by phone and convinced him that she was not home. Wickham eventually left her residence.

Concerned for her own safety, the victim contacted Wickham’s parents in an attempt to get the suspect to calm down. She also elected to drive around Hays in an effort to hide from Wickham. It is believed Wickham used an On Star tracking feature in their shared vehicle to locate the victim’s whereabouts.

At approximately 10:50 p.m., the victim received around 20 phone calls from Wickham. While driving west on 22nd Street in Hays, the victim observed Wickham’s Chevy Silverado behind her with Wickham driving. She attempted to flee from Wickham, but he chased after her and began ramming her vehicle. Wickham rammed his truck into the victim’s vehicle a total of three times, ultimately pushing her vehicle off the road and into a tree in a residential neighborhood.

The victim was able to escape the wrecked vehicle and ran from the scene. Wickham pursued the victim on foot yelling he was going to kill her as she attempted to seek refuge at multiple nearby residences, as evidenced by an eyewitness and a doorbell camera in the area. A resident in the area heard her calls for help and aided her in seeking shelter in a garage. The victim was able to contact law enforcement, and Hays Police Department officers responded to the scene of the collision and to the victim. Wickham had left the scene by the time law enforcement arrived. The victim informed responding officers that she believed it was Wickham’s intent to commit “suicide by cop” based on his calls to her that evening.

At approximately 11:05 p.m., officers responded to Wickham’s residence at 2202 Downing Ave., where they observed a gold Chevy Silverado pickup with heavy front-end damage. While officers were knocking at the door attempting to make contact with Wickham, they could hear Wickham’s voice on the other side of the door, and what sounded like Wickham moving heavy objects in front of the door that the officers were at. It was clear to officers that Wickham was beginning to barricade himself in the house.

Officers were able to speak with Wickham using the victim’s phone, and Wickham relayed that he refused to come out of his house and that he was going to kill any officers that entered his residence. Wickham also relayed that he planned on dying that night. Officers took protective measures, calling additional officers and setting up a perimeter around Wickham’s house to protect the community. The Hays Police Department Special Situation Response Team was called out to assist, which caused Sergeant Scott Heimann to respond to the scene. Due to it being Oktoberfest weekend, the Kansas Highway Patrol Special Response Team was also immediately requested to respond to the scene.

After establishing a perimeter, law enforcement formed Immediate Reaction Teams (IRTs) and placed them in the front and rear of the house. These teams were in place to safely take Wickham into custody should he exit the residence.

30 phone calls between Wickham and law enforcement took place while Wickham was barricaded in the house. The phone calls involved negotiations between Wickham and law enforcement, attempting to convince Wickham not to hurt himself or anyone else, and to exit the residence peacefully.

The IRT positioned in the back alley of the residence was led by Sergeant Scott Heimann. After hearing movement in the backyard, the team in the alley made an approach to the suspect’s back fence to ensure Wickham had not exited the residence. After confirming Wickham was not in the backyard, the team returned to their original position.

Shortly thereafter, at 1:56 a.m., Wickham fired a single round from within the residence, striking Sergeant Scott Heimann. A Special Situation Response Team Tactical Medic immediately moved Sergeant Heimann behind the cover of a vehicle and began rendering life-saving medical aid. Sergeant Heimann was transported to Hays Medical Center by law enforcement, and air transport to Via Christi in Wichita, Kansas by Eagle Medical Air was ordered. While in transport to Wichita, the EagleMed team rerouted to Hutchinson Regional Medical Center and, at 4:03 a.m., Sergeant Scott Heimann was pronounced deceased by a medical doctor.

Following the shooting, members of the Hays Police Department disembarked from an armored vehicle with rifle-rated shields to make entry into the suspect’s backyard in an attempt to make the scene safe and mitigate further harm to officers. From this time until 5:00 a.m., Wickham had multiple phone conversations with law enforcement where he repeatedly attempted to bait law enforcement into the house, threatened to kill law enforcement, lied to law enforcement that he had no weapons, admitted to shooting a law enforcement officer, and threatened to take his own life.

Between 2:47 a.m. and 2:50 a.m., members of the Hays Police Department, as well as the Kansas Highway Patrol, launched gas munitions into the house to try to get the suspect to evacuate the home.

At 3:49 a.m., Chief of Police Don Scheibler requested that the Kansas Highway Patrol SRT take tactical command of the situation, and members of the Hays Police Department were strategically pulled off scene due to the loss of their own. Hays Police Department Officers were replaced by personnel from the Kansas Highway Patrol and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.

Between 4:40 a.m. and 4:43 a.m., members of the Kansas Highway Patrol deployed impact rounds to knock out Wickham’s doorbell cameras.

At 5 a.m., Wickham advised law enforcement he was going to the basement of his house to commit suicide and stopped responding to the negotiator.

At 5:48 a.m., the Kansas Highway Patrol Tactical Team breached the door, and a drone was sent in. The drone located what was believed to be Wickham’s deceased body. A K-9 was deployed to ensure the safety of the residence, and, at 6:29 a.m., the KBI confirmed Wickham was deceased from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

From that point forward, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation began processing the scene, conducting interviews, and gathering evidence. As part of the investigation, all officers who were present on scene at 2202 Downing Ave. had their weapons examined to confirm no shots had been fired. Apart from gas munition rounds and impact rounds used to take out the cameras, the KBI confirmed no lethal rounds had been fired by any member of law enforcement that evening.

Based on the reports and discovery, if the suspect was alive, the Ellis County Attorney has found probable cause exists for the following charges:

• Capital murder, for the killing of Sergeant Scott Heimann
• Attempted premeditated murder in the first degree
• Aggravated battery with a deadly weapon (x3)
• Aggravated burglary of an occupied dwelling
• Driving under the influence
• Aggravated criminal threat
• Criminal threat (x2)
• Felony interference with law enforcement (x2)
• Criminal trespass
• Criminal damage to property
• Telephone harassment
• Stalking

“Members of the Hays Police Department were more than justified to be present at 2202 Downing Ave. that evening, based on seven different crimes, three of which were severe person felony offenses that occurred earlier in the night and posed an imminent threat to the safety of the community,” said Ellis County Attorney Aaron Cunningham. “Although law enforcement would have been authorized to exercise lethal force against Wickham, at no point did they attempt to do so.”

“Law enforcement acted professionally and appropriately throughout their entire duration on scene. Chief Scheibler’s immediate request for assistance from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation and the Kansas Highway Patrol in the wake of an officer shooting was in accordance with proper protocol and again demonstrated law enforcement’s priority throughout the investigation was the safety of the entire community. The courage of law enforcement on scene flowed like a river in the wake of the killing of one of their own. At least four officers went toward possible gunfire to help make the scene safe and prevent further harm to their fellow officers,” Cunningham said.

“Based on my review of the evidence, Zane Wickham did not target Sergeant Scott Heimann for who he was. Wickham targeted Sergeant Heimann for what he was: a law enforcement officer.”

“In reviewing all of the discovery and reports, it should be noted that the following individuals demonstrated remarkable courage and acted with the utmost professionalism: Master Trooper Seth Gruber (KHP), TAC Medic Jesse Hermosillo (HFD), Officer Clay Robinson (HPD), Sergeant Dakota Reese (HPD), Sergeant Brayden Parke (ELSO), Sergeant Phillip Gage (Hays PD), Corporal Cody Wolf (HPD), Officer Kyle Jones (HPD), Officer Caleb Koehn (HPD), Corporal Lindsey Clayton (HPD), and fallen Sergeant Scott Heimann (HPD), for making the ultimate sacrifice.”

The Ellis County Attorney’s Office continues to remind the community that if you or someone you know is a victim of domestic violence, contact law enforcement and Options, or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233. For more information regarding these resources please visit www.help4abuse.org.