Suspect’s wife testifies before grand jury

Kim Smith

Wednesday, June 20, 2001 | 11:06 a.m.

The wife of Jose Vigoa, the man charged Monday in a fatal armored car robbery and a string of casino heists, testified before a Clark County grand jury Tuesday.

Luisa Vigoa was quizzed for about 2 1/2 hours before a special grand jury that was convened as an "investigative tool" in the Vigoa case, Chief Deputy District Attorney David Roger said.

Prosecutors maintain Jose Vigoa, 40, and members of his family are responsible for seven casino heists and the slaying of two armored truck guards in Henderson.

Vigoa has been charged with five of the robberies and the armored car slayings, but his brothers-in-law have been charged with only one casino robbery each.

Roger said he hopes to tie Vigoa to two other hotel-casino heists and Luis Suarez, 36, and Pedro Rafael Duarte, 37, to the slayings and all of the other robberies.

Besides Vigoa's wife, Roger said, he intends to subpoena her sisters, who are romantically involved with Duarte and Suarez.

Roger declined to comment on what was said during the proceeding, which came one day after Vigoa was charged with the bulk of the 46 criminal counts he faces.

Deputy Public Defender Drew Christensen, who represents Vigoa, said he was advised last week that a number of the family members had been subpoenaed.

One of his concerns is that spouses have a right not to testify against their spouses, Christensen said.

"I don't know what was asked and what was not asked, but I might have some issues," Christensen said.

As it is, Christensen said, he intends to ask a district judge to exclude evidence found in a dead co-defendant's home.

Police have said a large amount of cash, weapons and clothing allegedly worn during the robberies was found in Oscar Sanchez Cisneros' home after the June 3, 2000, robbery of the Bellagio hotel-casino.

Those items and a statement made by Cisneros reportedly implicated Vigoa, Duarte and Suarez in a number of crimes.

However, Christensen said that because Cisneros committed suicide in his jail cell in October, Vigoa can no longer exercise his right to confront his accuser.

Without Cisneros, Christensen said, authorities cannot tie the seized items to Vigoa.

Peter Christiansen, who represents Suarez, said he has grave concerns about the special grand jury sessions.

"I question the propriety of using the grand jury as an investigative tool," Christiansen said. "The prosecutors have all of the power of the state behind them. They don't have to put people under oath and question them somewhere I can't be present."

Suarez is in a precarious position because of the seriousness of the charges the prosecutors are seeking, Christiansen said.

"This is the type of case where prosecutors will look to flip a co-defendant, give one a break for ratting out a co-defendant," Christiansen said.

The fact is, Suarez didn't commit any of the heists -- the one he is charged with and the others he has been linked to, Christiansen said.

"My client has been wrongfully accused, placed in a cell and treated differently than all of the other inmates for the past eight months simply because he is associated through marriage to the other suspects," Christiansen said.

Duarte and Vigoa made a brief court appearance before Justice of the Peace William Bixler this morning under heavy guard. Six Metro SWAT team members surrounded the pair as they sat in the jury box and three plainclothes officers were seated in the courtroom. The media were the only members of the public allowed in the courtroom.

The pair, who were bound at the feet, wrists and forearms, were given copies of the criminal complaints filed against them Monday and advised their arraignment had been postponed until July 5 because of a potential conflict of interest.

After the hearing, Chief Deputy District Attorney Frank Coumou said Vigoa's attorneys may ask to be removed from the case because their office represented Duarte in a previous case.

However, Coumou noted that the public defender's office also represented Suarez in the past and was not allowed to withdraw from the case.

Bixler also appointed private attorney Michael Cristalli to represent Duarte this morning.

Because of security concerns, the July 5 hearing will likely be held in a courtroom that is equipped with video equipment, so the defendants will not have to be taken from the jail to the courthouse, Bixler said.

Authorities have continually taken extra security precautions since Vigoa and Suarez's arrest last year. At one point, they went so far as to have a secret hearing in the Clark County Detention Center.

Today's hearing was held 30 minutes earlier than expected. In addition, the defendants were alone in the courtroom, whereas the judges typically bring in all of that day's defendants in at once.

Christensen, Vigoa's attorney, said he will use the two weeks until July 5 to go through the five banker boxes he just received filled with police statements and other evidence pertaining to the case.

"With the volume of stuff, we're looking at months, if not a year, before we get to trial," Christensen said.