Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - Man Kills Co-Worker with Sledgehammer Because He Doesn't Like Her | Crime Alert 6AM 11.25.25

Episode Date: November 26, 2025

Amber Czech is dead at 20 years old. Police in Minnesota say a coworker who said he didn’t like her, walked over to her workstation and bashed her with a sledgehammer at the manufacturing plant that employed them. A Georgia woman nearly dies after her ex-boyfriend shoots her ten times, kidnaps her, and drove around for hours. A traffic stop in Florida ends with a drunk-driving arrest and an unplanned DoorDash delivery by an officer after the driver passed out at a traffic light. Drew Nelson reports.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Crime alert, hourly update. Breaking Crime News now. I'm Drew Nelson. Amber Zek is dead at 20 years old. Police in Minnesota say a co-worker who said he didn't like her, walked over to her workstation and bashed her with a sledgehammer at the manufacturing plant that employed them. Prosecutors say he planned to kill her for a long time. The death of the young welder shocks the state and sends a wave of grief and anger through women in the trades across the country.

A visitation in Hutchinson, the latest moment of mourning for Amber, whose life ended inside advanced process technologies in Kokato. A steady line of people moved through St. Anastasia Catholic Church. Family member Shannon Visser spoke to our TV news partners at Fox 9 Milwaukee. Right now we are just trying to bless Amber and remember Amber in every part of her life that has touched people and touched everybody in this community. Loved ones describe her as joyful and ambitious. Investigators say Amber was busy at her station when co-worker David Bruce DeLong walked over with the sledge. Deputies found her with fatal head trauma and significant blood loss.

The bloody hammer lay nearby. Surveillance video showed DeLong leaving his workstation moments earlier. He allegedly told a witness, quote, I hit her with your hammer. She is by your toolbox. She is gone. DeLong faces a second-degree murder charge. Wright County District Attorney Brian Lutz is evaluating first-degree premeditated murder.

which would require a grand jury. A judge has ordered a competency evaluation. The company has paused production and says it is cooperating with investigators. Hundreds of women in the trades convened an emergency meeting of the National Association of Women in Construction. Members shared stories of gender harassment, safety fears, and the sense that Amber's murder represents something bigger. Our heart breaks for her family, for her friends, for all those who were touched by what happened to her. this was nothing that such a young woman deserved ever, ever, ever. That's Association President Rita Brown.

Workers nationwide made a showing by wearing blue in Amber's honor. Trade unions issued statements calling for safer work sites, more accountability, and a cultural reset around hostility toward women. Amber had completed a 10-month welding program in the spring of 2024. She was known for her precision and pride in her work. Her obituary remembered her standard, quote, If you are not going to do it right, don't do it at all. Friends and family said she loved the outdoors,

took care of people without being asked, and never hesitated to help with a hard task. The response has poured into her family's online fundraiser as well. The GoFundMe stands at $112,976 toward a $120,000 goal, with North America's building trades unions, the top donor, at $5,000. Donors left messages about their own experiences in male-dominated trades and their heartbreak at Amber's death. One contributor writing, quote, as a woman working in a traditionally male job who gets discriminated against constantly, I stand with Amber.

Another donor posting, quote, we may not have known each other, but we were sisters in the trades. More crime and justice news after this. You see that red flag, runaway. Those are the words of a Georgia woman who ignored her own warning and nearly died because of it. Recovering in DeKalb County near Atlanta, after her ex-boyfriend shot her 10 times, kidnapped her, and drove her through multiple counties while she pleaded for her life. Shemay Pitt 23 told W.S.B. She met her ex Joshua Woodruff on November 2nd to talk,

then watched the man explode into violence inside her car. She spoke in an exclusive interview. He steps back, he steps forward, and he starts shooting me. My ears are ringing, but I come into realization that he's shooting at me. Pitt says she sat bleeding from 10 gunshot wounds as Woodruff drove her from Snapfinger Road in unincorporated DeKalb County to Douglasville. She said she heard him making two calls. Basically asked him what to do with my body. I'm scared. I asked him, can I just write? Can I just write a letter to my son. Pitts says Woodruff abandoned her to hospital after hours on the road. Paramedics moved her to another trauma center while security detained Woodruff.

Police charged him with aggravated assault and false imprisonment. Pitt's mother, Sherry Tucker, wants the charge is upgraded, including a charge for a modified assault rifle. He needs to be charged for bringing over county lines. He needs to be federally charged for having automatic switches to federal effect. The attack has left Pitt with an overwhelming stack of medical bills. A go-fund lease set up in her name has raised only $730 toward a $22,000 goal. On the campaign page, Tucker wrote, quote,

On Sunday November 2, he ambushed her in an act of unthinkable violence. He shot my daughter 10 times with an AR rifle that had an internal switch and was loaded with 762 AAC blackout round ammunition. She tried jumping out the car on the highway but couldn't due to all the broken bones as he constantly threatened to shoot her in the head. Through it all, my baby begged for her life, and by the grace of God, she survived. Shemay is now fighting through surgeries and a long recovery

to take care of her four-year-old autistic son. A traffic case in Florida ends with a drunk driving arrest and an unplanned home visit by police after officers find a door-dash driver passed out at a traffic light. Cape Coral police say they found 25-year-old Luis on hell Alania Estreya slumped over the wheel of his Toyota sedan at Skyline Boulevard in Cape Coral Parkway. Body camera footage shows officers shouting for him to put the car in part. They found an open beer inside his vehicle.

The breathalyzer recorded a 0.15 blood alcohol content nearly twice the legal limit. He was charged with DUI and driving with a suspended license booked into the Lee County Jail. Officers learned he was on a door-dash run and concerned themselves with the late delivery. Body cam shows an officer confirming the address, shrugging, and deciding to finish the job. The department reported that, quote, The actions of the officer helped ensure the resident receive the meal safely and without unnecessary delay. Estreya appeared confused on scene and spoke to officers in Spanish. DoorDash later said the company had permanently removed Estreya from the platform.

A spokesperson told ABC News, the company has, quote, zero tolerance for driving under the influence and thanked officers, quote, for keeping the community safe and going above and beyond to deliver this customer's dinner. For the latest crime and justice news, follow Crime Alert hourly update on your favorite podcast app. With this crime alert, I'm Drew Nelson. This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human.