Gang violence re-ignites overnight

Keith Paul

Wednesday, March 14, 2001 | 11:11 a.m.

An area already scarred by six murders in a month blamed on warring gangs was hit again Tuesday night by a suspected gang-related slaying.

And early this morning, police say, a possible retaliation shooting for the homicide followed not far away.

Tobby V. Davis, 26, was found shot in the 600 block of Jackson Avenue about 10 p.m. Tuesday. He was taken to University Medical Center, where he died at 10:42 p.m. Davis had a tattoo of the initials of one of the two gangs that have been battling each other -- a conflict that has resulted in at least six deadly shootings in the past month.

"Obviously it is an indication (that the slaying may be gang related) when he had a tattoo of the initials of the gang," Lt. Wayne Petersen of Metro Police's homicide unit said. "There was also some talk at the scene that this was retaliation for one of the other recent shootings."

Then about 5 a.m. 21-year-old Andrius Macklin was shot several times in an apartment complex in the 500 block of North Lamb Boulevard. The suspect in the shooting was wearing a red shirt and a red bandana, police said. The apartment complex was several miles away from the scene of the recent gang violence, but in an area known to have gang violence, Petersen said.

There were no arrests or suspects identified in either shooting. Macklin was in critical condition this morning.

Metro and North Las Vegas police increased patrols last week after six people were killed, including two innocent bystanders. The area includes Martin Luther King Boulevard between Carey Avenue and Lake Mead Boulevard. It is in both Metro and North Las Vegas police jurisdictions.

Since the increased patrols last week, there have been no slayings on the North Las Vegas side, but Davis' slaying may have marked a gang-related slaying in Metro's area.

Gang members appeared to lie low during the weekend and Monday, as officers and gang detectives patrolled the area. Police suspected once more officers started going into the neighborhood, the gang trouble would ease, but the cops admit the gang problem won't be solved simply by increasing patrols and the number of detectives in the area.

"We plan on meeting with citizens and community leaders and talk about the actions we're taking. We're not going to fix it overnight," Lt. Jim Owens of Metro's gang unit said. "There are a lot of good people over there who want to do something to help. It's a community problem, and the police won't solve a gang problem without the community."

Several residents of Buena Vista Springs Apartments -- on which several of the homicides have centered -- said they felt safer with the increased police patrols in the area, but refused to give their names, still fearing gang violence.

"People do feel a little more comfortable and a little bit safer," said Harold Cobb, the apartment manager, who has also managed low-income housing developments in some of the rougher parts of other cities. "We want people to be safer so they don't think they have to live like hermits and stay inside their apartments all the time, afraid to go outside."

Owens said over the weekend a couple of gang members were arrested in the area of the past slayings on drug-related crimes, but officers and detectives didn't find any of the violence that had been plaguing the area.

But the slaying Tuesday and the possible retaliation shooting early this morning point out that the police are dealing with two groups that continue to battle each other, and the violence won't be confined to one neighborhood.

"They've hated each other forever," Owens said. "They aren't going to stop hating each other just because there are more officers in the area."

Residents in the area had claimed the police were not doing enough to stop the violence as police struggled to solve the slayings. Police said residents who know about the crimes weren't providing any information.

North Las Vegas Police have opened an office in the Buena Vista Springs Apartments hoping to spark cooperation and repair the damaged relationship with the residents, Lt. Art Redcay, a department spokesman said.