Real estate agent charged with murder held without bond

A real estate agent who was charged with second degree murder on Thursday made an appearance in court Friday morning.

A judge ordered that Dirk Blume, the suspect arrested in the death of Seth Hansen, be held without bond.

The ruling came after new details came to light about the incident that happened at a convenience store near 138th and Maple on January 7th. Investigators said that 40-year-old Seth Hansen was closing up around 12:30 am when he was approached by somebody in a truck. After some sort of discussion or argument, the truck sat still. When Hansen moved in front of the truck, the vehicle accelerated, hitting him.

Hansen fell to the ground and hit his head on the concrete. An autopsy revealed that he died of blunt force trauma.

Witnesses came forward to help police track down the pickup and the man suspected of being behind the wheel, Dirk Blume.

When police found the truck, they found that the license plates had been changed and that there was a gun in the driver's side door of the vehicle. According to the defense, Blume had just registered the vehicle last week, which explained the plate change. He also has a conceal/carry permit for the firearm.

In court on Friday, prosecutors argued that Blume could be a flight risk as the incident all took place in a matter of minutes. The defense requested a $250k bond, saying that he is a well-respected member of the real estate community and not a flight risk.

The judge ruled that, because of the facts of the case, that Blume could be a danger to the community.

Blume, 45, is an Omaha real estate agent. He was taken into custody about a week after Hansen died.

Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine has charged Blume with Second Degree Murder. The charge is punishable by 20 years to life in prison. He's also charged with Use of a Weapon to Commit a felony (not a gun) in connection to the death.

We spoke with Hansen's sister, Eve Shanklin, after court on Friday. She told WOWT 6 News, "It was shocking to seem him. I mean, you know, you see pictures and everything but to actually see the person was a little overwhelming. I'm just really glad that the judge decided to keep him, um, behind bars because, like they said, it was 60 seconds between when he had said something and then ran my brother over."

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for February 10.