Man in chase is suspect in slaying

Keith Paul

Monday, April 23, 2001 | 12:25 p.m.

Donations accepted A fund has been set up at Bank of America to help the family of Trooper Robert Kintzel. The account number is 004963619217. Donations may be made at any branch.

A California man who struck a state trooper during a high-speed chase with police Saturday is a suspect in the slaying of a California woman found dead at a Las Vegas motel, Metro Police told the Sun this morning.

Metro Police are investigating possible connections between Vornelius Jamal Phillips, 25, and a 30-year-old woman found dead in the Budget Suites on Stardust Road. Her body was found about 9:30 a.m. Saturday about an hour after the chase with Phillips ended.

"It is premature for me to talk about the investigation, but we are looking at the possibility that Phillips is a suspect in the homicide," Lt. Wayne Petersen of Metro's homicide unit said. "Certainly if he is responsible for the murder that could explain his lack of concern for his or anyone else's welfare."

The 35-minute high-speed chase ended shortly after Phillips is accused of striking Nevada Highway Patrol Trooper Robert "Bobby" Kintzel, who was attempting to put down metal spikes to puncture the suspect's tires as he fled north on U.S. 95 near Flamingo Road at about 8:30 a.m. Saturday.

Kintzel was undergoing brain surgery this morning and remains in critical condition at University Medical Center, said Trooper Alan Davidson, a state patrol spokesman. Kintzel was still in surgery this morning.

"We remain optimistic and he was doing pretty well until this," Davidson said. "He's not out of the woods yet."

Kintzel suffered internal injuries, a fractured skull and a broken pelvis.

"He hit the trooper, driving him into his patrol car," Metro Police Capt. Dennis Cobb said. "The force of the impact tore off the front fender of the patrol car."

Phillips, 25, was arrested after his car was rammed into a concrete barrier by a Metro patrol car seconds after Kintzel was hit. Phillips was booked into the Clark County Detention Center on charges of attempted murder of a police officer and several other felony counts, Cobb said.

Kintzel, 30, a six-year veteran of the highway patrol originally from Cleveland, was the second person injured as a result of the suspect's flight from authorities, police said. A tourist was kidnapped from McCarran International Airport at the beginning of the chase when Phillips was accused of stealing a taxicab about 7:55 a.m., police said.

The tourist, 59-year-old Joan Lewis of Maryland, either jumped or was forced from the cab and was in critical condition this morning at UMC and suffered broken ribs, a broken kneecap and collapsed lungs.

Phillips had taken a cab he hailed at the Las Vegas Convention Center to the airport and paid the fare, but the cab driver had some suspicions about his passenger. The driver got out and was talking to a parking enforcement officer about Phillips, but by then Phillips allegedly was getting behind the wheel of another cab while the driver was handling the luggage, Cobb said.

Phillips headed east on Interstate 215, but when traffic was stopped by a trooper responding to an accident, he went up to a woman driving a sport utility vehicle and pushed his way into the truck. The woman was able to get out as Phillips is accused of continuing on I-215 toward Henderson, Cobb said.

Henderson Police joined the pursuit near Lake Mead Drive and U.S. 95, and as Phillips made his way toward Lake Mead, Boulder City Police and the National Park Service Police became involved.

Along the way Phillips is accused of striking a Park Police car and running a Boulder City Police officer off the road, Cobb said.

Phillips eventually made his way to U.S. 95, where Kintzel was laying down the spike strip in an attempt to end the chase, that police say reached speeds of 90 mph.

Phillips is accused of going across three lanes of traffic toward a car coming onto the highway. The officer rammed the SUV that Phillips was driving at the time, Cobb said.

When the SUV crashed, Phillips rushed out of the wrecked truck and started coming at the Metro officer.

"The officer thought he was about to be attacked by the guy," Cobb said.

But another officer pulled up and both the officers had their handguns pointed at Phillips, who then surrendered.

Troopers have maintained a constant vigil at the hospital for Kintzel.

Kintzel was one of two troopers who helped catch two escaped prisoners from Arizona, who led authorities on a chase through Arizona, California and Nevada in August of 1997. Kintzel was one of the troopers who took up the chase when the pair entered Nevada near Laughlin in a stolen car.

The convicts ditched the car near Harrah's hotel-casino in Laughlin after a 45-minute chase in Nevada, and Kintzel chased one of the two men down and arrested him.

Sun reporter

Jace Radke contributed to this story.