Shots fired into apartment kills man

Scott Van Winkle

Monday, May 12, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

A day after a drive-by shooting that left one man dead, disturbed neighbors returned to daily life at the scene of the crime in downtown Las Vegas.

The man was killed at about 1:45 a.m. Sunday morning in the back bedroom of a barely furnished apartment at 440 N. 13th St. Shots were fired through the second-story window from a car on the street behind the building, police said.

The victim, whose name was not released Sunday, died from gunshot wounds to the head, police said.

Neighbor Gloria Mejia said the apartment was home to a group of about seven people who would get into fights almost every night.

She said she heard three shots the night of the killing, then heard people screaming and running around upstairs until the police came.

It was the first time anything like that had happened at her building in the two years she has lived there, she said.

Occupants of the upstairs apartment said they hardly knew the person shot, though one of the group said he lived there. He said he planned to sleep at a friend's house Sunday night.

"It isn't safe," he said. "You don't feel comfortable sleeping where somebody just got killed. It's not because you're afraid they're going to drive by again."

Police said witnesses at the scene described the vehicle used in the shooting as a blue Honda Accord. Witnesses also saw a red Datsun leaving the scene eastbound on Bonanza Road, police said.

Anyone with information concerning the homicide is urged to call Metro homicide division at 229-3521 or Secret Witness at 385-5555.