Trial begins in shooting death

Kim Smith

Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2001 | 10:41 a.m.

The trial of a teenager accused of kidnapping and murdering a 25-year-old local man last spring began Monday.

Chief Deputy District Attorney William Koot told jurors Monday that Juan Tadeo, 17, and his friend Jesus Celestin, 19, shot Conrad Sandoval, 25, to death after he flirted with Celestin's girlfriend and flashed a large sum of money at a party last March.

Sandoval decided to go to a party on Vegas Valley Drive after getting paid on March 4, 2000, Koot said. While at the party, Sandoval drank too much, began using cocaine and started to flirt with Rena Kimenker, 16.

Koot alleges that Tadeo and Celestin led Sandoval to think that Kimenker was a relative of Celestin's and that he had a chance at a tryst with her. The four of them got into Sandoval's car and began driving to another location.

Somewhere along the way, Koot said the trio dropped the girl off, telling Sandoval they didn't want her parents to see her with him. They told him that once he dropped them off at Celestin's apartment, he could go back and pick Kimenker up.

The three men continued on a few blocks and stopped at the Hampton Apartments on Nellis Boulevard. Once there, Sandoval somehow got shot four times and his arm was run over by his own car as the two men sped away.

It wasn't until an autopsy was performed that police even learned Sandoval had been shot. They thought he died as the result of a car accident because no bullet wounds were readily apparent.

Tadeo told police that when they got to the apartments they planned to beat Sandoval up, but he wouldn't get out of the car, Koot said. Tadeo said the gun went off accidentally, but he thought it only went off twice.

Koot told jurors that somehow Sandoval's car hit a tree and a witness reported seeing someone roll Sandoval's body over, steal his wallet and take off in the car.

Tadeo and Celestin ended up washing off Sandoval's bloody money and wallet at a relatives' house and torching the car at Lake Mead with a friend, Koot said.

Koot said Tadeo should be convicted of burglary, robbery, kidnapping, murder and third-degree arson. Each were allegedly committed with use of a firearm so any sentence would be doubled.

Tadeo's attorney, Amy Dreifus, however, said Tadeo is guilty of none of those things.

Dreifus said Tadeo believed they were only going to beat Sandoval up for touching Kimenker inappropriately and using vulgar language with her.

When Celestin passed him the gun, he assumed it was empty because they had been playing with it earlier in the evening, Dreifus said. He also assumed that Celestin just wanted him to scare Sandoval with it.

The gun went off accidentally though and he panicked, Dreifus said. He pushed Sandoval's body out of the car, the car lurched over Sandoval and into a tree and Celestin grabbed his wallet.

The two of them then took off, setting fire to the car later on.

Dreifus pleaded with the jury not to settle for first impressions.

The trial is being held before District Judge Sally Loehrer.

Celestin's trial is scheduled for immediately after Tadeo's. Kimenker was granted immunity in the case and is expected to testify at both trials.