Death of man in police custody at dealership ruled homicide

The Clark County coroner’s office has ruled that Gerrod Belin’s death was a homicide after he died in police custody in October while suffering a medical crisis.

About 1:40 p.m. Oct. 19, Metropolitan Police Department officers were called to a car dealership on the 5500 block of West Sahara Avenue, near Decatur Boulevard, after Belin had allegedly “battered several employees,” Assistant Sheriff Christopher Darcy said in October.

When police arrived, four people were holding Belin down on the ground, Darcy has said. The 33-year-old was handcuffed, and Sgt. Matthew Vorce gave him a dose of naloxone because he believed Belin was having an overdose.

Belin died at the scene, and the coroner office’s ruled his death was a homicide due to mechanical asphyxia and manual strangulation. Significant conditions of his death were probable hypertensive cardiovascular disease, obesity and acute intoxication by the combined effects of tramadol, chlorpromazine, hydroxyzine and methamphetamine.

A homicide ruling from the coroner’s office does not mean a criminal act occurred. Metro spokesman Misael Parra said Wednesday that an internal investigation determined “that the officer’s actions did not contribute to (Belin’s) death.”

Tramadol is a prescription opioid, chlorpromazine is an anti-psychotic and hydroxyzine is an antihistamine also used to treat anxiety.

Darcy said the naloxone administered to Belin “did not work,” and a preliminary toxicology report showed a stimulant in his system.

Naloxone is used to temporarily stop life-threatening effects of opioid overdoses but will not reverse overdoses from other drugs, including alcohol or stimulants such as cocaine or methamphetamine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.

Darcy said in October that investigators were searching for two of the four customers who restrained Belin before his death. The two men left the dealership before police could talk to them, he said.

Parra said Wednesday that the two men had not been found, but that they are not considered suspects and are “simply witnesses.”

Vorce and two other officers — Osvaldo Rincon and Jose Cabada, both 24 — were placed on routine paid administrative leave while the department investigated the in-custody death, but Vorce has since returned to duty, Parra said.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.