News briefs for May 13, 2002

Monday, May 13, 2002 | 9:48 a.m.

Woman found after fire

A woman found dead after a small fire in a second-hand clothing store Friday was stabbed to death.

Henderson firefighters were called to 2nd Impressions, a clothing store in the 7300 block of South Eastern Avenue near Warm Springs Road, about 2:30 a.m. Friday. Firefighters put out the small fire and found the body of 52-year-old Candis Hickam of Henderson.

Detectives originally suspected the woman was the victim of a homicide, since the fire was small and an insignificant amount of smoke was generated, police said.

An autopsy determined the cause of death was stab wounds.

Anyone with information in this case is asked to call Metro's homicide unit at 229-3521 or Secret Witness at 385-5555.

Suspect arrested in Maryland

A Henderson man was arrested Saturday in Maryland in the February death of his wife, according to Henderson Police investigators.

David Ruffa, 40, is accused of murder, first-degree kidnapping and third-degree arson in the death of Shao Lei Liu.

Local authorities discovered that Ruffa had boarded a flight for Maryland, where he had relatives. He was taken to a detention center and is awaiting extradition to Nevada.

Liu, 37, was discovered in a parked white Chevrolet Blazer on Spague Street in Henderson by police about 12:30 p.m. on Feb. 17. Liu had left her job at the Gold Strike in Jean shortly after midnight on Feb. 7, police said. She had not been seen since then.

Police say woman hit in crosswalk

A 42-year-old woman was struck and killed about 1:40 a.m. Saturday as she walked in a crosswalk on Boulder Highway near Tropicana Avenue, Metro Police said.

A Ford Bronco was northbound on Boulder Highway when it struck Helen Gianopoulos, 42, of Las Vegas, Metro Detective Doug Nutton said. The driver said she never saw a pedestrian, he said.

Metro Police are continuing to investigate the accident, Nutton said.

Two-car crash claims one life

A 21-year-old Las Vegas resident died and three others were injured about 9:30 a.m. Friday in a two-car accident at the intersection of Spring Mountain Road and Grand Canyon Drive.

The driver of a southbound car, Christopher Trujillo, failed to stop at Grand Canyon Drive, striking a car driven by Jeanne McInerney, 47, traveling east on Spring Mountain Road, Detective Doug Nutton said. The southbound car then crashed into a light pole and a block wall.

McInerney, driving a 1994 Chevrolet, suffered moderate injuries, Nutton said. He said alcohol was a contributing factor in the collision.

Trujillo and a passenger, Garrett Hughes, 21, were ejected from the southbound car. Hughes was in critical condition at University Medical Center Sunday .

A third person, Greg Trujillo, 26, was also ejected from the car, and was listed in serious condition.

Road under construction

The part of Lakeshore Drive that intersects with the entrance to the Southern Nevada Water Authority facilities in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area will be under construction today through Friday, water authority officials said.

A 400-foot section of the road will be detoured around the resurfacing project between 6:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. daily. No traffic stoppages are projected, but delays are expected, National Park Service rangers said.

State, cities are reimbursed

The state and three localities received $333,624 from the federal government to reimburse them for money spent responding to the anthrax threat last year.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced it has allocated $252,195 to the Clark County Health District, $52,145 to Washoe County Health District, $14,770 to Carson City and $25,000 to the state.