Metro officer expected to recover after east valley shooting
A Las Vegas police officer thought a vehicle had hit his patrol car Sunday afternoon, but it was a man firing a shot shooting at him with a semiautomatic handgun.
Glass shattered as the shooter fired two more rounds and the officer and his partner, who was in the car with him, “quickly realized” they were being attacked, Metro Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said.
One officer was struck by a round in the right hand and was expected to recover. He was being treated at University Medical Center, where McMahill spoke with reporters. The wound was not considered life-threatening.
It was the second time a Metro officer had been shot in three days. Officer Jeremy Robertson, 37, was shot in his upper right leg about 3:45 a.m. Friday while investigating a prowler call. He had surgery and is expected to recover.
A total of four Las Vegas cops have been shot in the past two months. Since Friday, Metro has had two officers riding in each car on patrol. It’s a common maneuver after police are the targets of violence.
McMahill acknowledged it’s a “rough time” for police, but stopped short of saying the Las Vegas Valley is seeing an onslaught on officers.
“That false narrative that’s being spread across this country in the ‘war on police’ is exactly that, it’s false,” McMahill said.
Multiple fatal police shootings have garnered national attention in recent weeks.
Officers in Illinois have been hunting three men in connection with the Tuesday shooting death of Fox Lake police Lt. Joe Gliniewicz. Houston Sheriff’s Deputy Darren Goforth was shot 15 times while pumping gas on Aug. 28. Shannon J. Miles is facing a capital murder charge in connection with that slaying, according to local news reports.
In general, McMahill said, the vast majority of the public supports police, and the force “finds solace” in that.
“These officers go out day in and out to make a difference in this community,” he said. “There are dozens and dozens of examples every single month where they do just that.”
Sunday’s shooting happened at 12:12 p.m., police said. The two officers were at the intersection of Tropicana and Nellis Boulevards on their way to investigate a call about a disturbance at a 99 Cents Only store, 4910 E. Tropicana Blvd.
While waiting at a red light, a man came up to the patrol car and fired rounds from a Springfield handgun, McMahill said.
The officer who was struck was on the passenger side, McMahill said. Both officers got out of the car and one of them pulled a passerby out of the “line of fire.”
Meanwhile, the shooter ran, and the other officer chased him, McMahill said. The officer who was chasing the shooter saw that he had dropped the gun, McMahill said.
McMahill praised the two officers’ “remarkable restraint” in not firing a single shot. Neither officer was identified.
Robert Benjamin, 44, saw the confrontation. He often stands near the corner of Nellis and Tropicana “flying a sign for Jesus.” He was doing just that when he heard three gunshots.
Benjamin said he saw the officer who was unharmed chase the shooter, a man in a red T-shirt. The man dropped the gun and ran into the street toward the median, where he surrendered.
He didn’t resist or put up a fight,” Benjamin said. “I just hope that young man finds Jesus.”
Police were still working to identify the shooter late Sunday afternoon and only described him as Hispanic. The man was arrested and the officer was hospitalized. McMahill said that the man hadn’t been formally charged, but two counts of attempted murder “would make sense.”
As of Sunday afternoon, the man was still being questioned.
It’s unclear whether the man was linked to the disturbance call at the 99 Cents Only store. Police did not say whether anyone was taken into custody in that incident.
Police closed the intersection of Tropicana and Nellis while they investigated.
Contact Wesley Juhl at wjuhl@reviewjournal.com and 702-383-0391. Find him on Twitter: @WesJuhl. Contact Ricardo Torres at rtorres@reviewjournal.com and 702-383-0381. Find him on Twitter: @rickytwrites. Contact Cassandra Taloma at ctaloma@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Find her on Twitter: @CassandraTaloma.
