Armed man killed by police in downtown Las Vegas identified
The Metropolitan Police Department and Clark County coroner’s office on Tuesday identified a man who was shot and killed by Metro police last week after he allegedly pointed a rifle at officers in a downtown apartment complex.
In a briefing at police headquarters, authorities said officers Matthew Kravetz, 35, and Andrew Buckland, 39, opened fire Thursday after Seth Wilson, 49, pointed the long gun in the 200 block of North Ninth Street.
The two officers fired a combined total of 14 rounds at Wilson, who was wearing a red “Make America Great Again” hat, according to witness statements and surveillance footage.
The Las Vegas man died at the scene from multiple gunshot wounds, authorities said. It marked the fifth fatal shooting by Metro this year, Assistant Sheriff Yasenia Yatomi said in the briefing.
Officers had responded around 1 p.m. to a 911 call about an armed person who was allegedly threatening to kill someone, police said.
The caller reported Wilson standing inside the door to his apartment building, pointing his gun at the caller as he entered.
Surveillance footage shows that Wilson stopped pointing his gun toward the caller after he entered the building, letting him go past and up the stairs to his second-floor apartment.
“I just skipped every other step, praying I wasn’t gonna get shot in the back,” the witness said in the call.
When officers arrived on the scene, they made contact with Wilson by phone in an effort to encourage him to peacefully surrender, Yatomi said.
But, “after several moments, Wilson said, ‘I’m done with this,’ and hung up,” she said.
Inside the building, Wilson was told multiple times to drop the gun before he pointed it at officers, police said.
Kravetz and Buckland fired their guns as Wilson began to lower his gun toward them, surveillance footage shows.
Had Wilson survived, he would have faced charges of assault with a deadly weapon and resisting a public officer with a firearm, Yatomi said.
Wilson did not shoot at the officers, and police said no officers were injured. Both officers remain on paid administrative leave, Yatomi confirmed.
Contact Ricardo Torres-Cortez at rtorres@reviewjournal.com and Estelle Atkinson at eatkinson@reviewjournal.com.