DA vows more charges in heists, slayings

Kim Smith

Tuesday, June 19, 2001 | 10:41 a.m.

After 16 months of investigating, authorities charged Jose Vigoa with two counts of murder Monday in a Henderson armored car heist, and they say they aren't done yet.

Chief Deputy District Attorney David Roger said additional charges could be forthcoming against suspects already in jail, and others could be charged in a series of hotel-casino heists and the Henderson armored car robbery in which two guards were killed.

Police allege Vigoa, 40, began robbing hotel-casinos in June 1998 with the help of three men, Oscar Sanchez Cisneros, Luis Suarez, 36, and Pedro Rafael Duarte, 37.

Suarez has been charged in the June 3, 2000, robbery of the Bellagio. Duarte was arrested Monday and charged in connection with a June 1999 Desert Inn robbery in which two guards were shot. Cisneros killed himself in jail in October.

Vigoa met Cisneros while working in construction, and Suarez and Duarte are married to or involved with the sisters of Vigoa's wife, Luisa, authorities said.

Police and prosecutors allege the group took part in a family crime spree and are pursuing charges against other family members, as well as further charges against those already arrested.

"The investigation did not end (Monday)," Roger said. "We will continue interviewing witnesses and we are still seeking evidence against others who may have been involved in these robberies and in the murders."

Vigoa, Cisneros and Suarez were arrested last year and charged in the June 3, 2000, robbery of the Bellagio hotel-casino, but authorities did not have enough evidence to charge them with other crimes.

Their case was further complicated when the 23-year-old Cisneros -- who implicated himself, Vigoa, Suarez and Duarte in a number of the crimes -- hung himself in October at the Clark County Detention Center.

However, Roger said authorities have now put together enough pieces to charge Vigoa in connection with four more heists and to arrest Duarte in connection with two.

On Monday prosecutors charged Vigoa with 29 crimes, and police arrested Duarte on seven criminal counts.

Both men are expected to make court appearances Wednesday and a preliminary hearing date will be scheduled soon thereafter, Roger said.

Vigoa was charged in connection with the robberies of the MGM on Sept. 20, 1998, the Desert Inn on June 28, 1999, and the Mandalay Bay on Oct. 11, 1999.

In addition, Vigoa was charged with robbery and open murder in the holdup and slaying of two armored truck guards in Henderson on March 3, 2000.

Duarte was charged with conspiracy to commit robbery and/or murder in the MGM incident and five counts of attempted murder or attempted robbery in the Desert Inn heist. He also faces a possession of a stolen vehicle charge.

In court documents filed Monday, prosecutors listed several pieces of evidence tying the men to the crimes.

* DNA tests linked Suarez, Vigoa and Cisneros to ski masks found in a search of Cisneros' home and they linked Duarte, Vigoa and Cisneros to water bottles found in the Desert Inn robbery.

* Blood found at the Henderson murder scene matched Cisneros, who admitted he was shot in the leg during the robbery.

* An FBI agent and a federal probation officer identified Vigoa as the man seen robbing two of the casinos on videotape. Witnesses to those robberies and others said Vigoa matches the description of one of the robbers, including a limp.

* Prosecutors noted a pattern of spending on high-priced items among the suspects after each robbery, despite their low incomes, and well as large amounts of cash found on Vigoa and Cisneros when they were arrested.

* A revolver stolen from a Mandalay Bay guard and used in the Henderson double murder/robbery was found in Cisneros' home.

Roger said one of the difficulties police and prosecutors face in the case is the tight-knit relationship among the families involved.

"(But) I suppose that when family members face criminal charges, there's a chance the family unit may divide so they can look out for their individual interests," Roger said.

Should one of the sisters decide to become a witness at the trial, Roger said it could get interesting.

A wife could not be forced to testify against her husband, but she could be asked to testify against her brothers-in-law, Roger said.

"Much like other high-profile murder cases, this is a highly circumstantial case," Roger admitted. "But I believe that when all of the facts and circumstances are presented to a jury with a cogent argument, there is sufficient evidence for a conviction."