Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

News briefs for July 3, 2003

Two men sought in Ellis Island robbery

Metro Police are looking for two young men who robbed the Ellis Island Casino and Brewery on Koval Lane about 1:30 a.m. today.

Lt. Ted Snodgrass said one of the robbers pointed a gun at a female employee in the cage on the casino floor, threw a plastic bag into the cage and told her to fill it up. Then he turned and pointed the gun at the whole casino, he said.

After getting an undisclosed amount of cash, they jumped into a car and drove about a block and crashed it. They ran from the car, leaving the gun inside. It turned out to be a fake gun, Snodgrass said.

The suspects are in their late teens or early 20s, police said.

Dead woman found in desert

A jogger found a dead woman in a desert area almost a north of Deer Springs Way and south of Interstate 215 in North Las Vegas about 9 a.m. Wednesday morning, police said.

When North Las Vegas officers arrived, they saw that the the woman, who appeared to be between the ages of 35 and 45, and had suffered a gunshot wound, Officer Justin Roberts, spokesman for the department, said. He said it appeared that she had been dead for about 24 hours earlier.

The woman is the 13th homicide in North Las Vegas this year, Roberts said, and the second victim who was found in the desert.

Police are asking anyone who might have seen vehicles in the desert area Monday or Tuesday to call detectives at 633-9111 or Crime Stoppers at 385-5555.

Boy, 3, hit by car, in critical condition

A 3-year-old Las Vegas boy was in critical condition at University Medical Center after he apparently ran into the roadway and was struck by a car about 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Metro Police said.

Police are investigating the accident on Claymont Street at Cottage Grove Avenue near the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Lt. Doug Nutton said. Investigators said the child appeared to be at fault.

Dakoda Mitchell was playing with other children in the grass along the west edge of Claymont as a 1993 Saturn drove southbound between 20 mph and 25 mph, witnesses told police. The child ran into the path of the car and it knocked him to the ground.

LV firefighter suffers shock

A Las Vegas firefighter suffered an electrical shock while fighting a two-alarm fire in a downtown Las Vegas home Wednesday.

Firefighters were called to the home on Franklin Avenue near East Charleston and Maryland Parkway at 12:37 p.m. Roofers working on a church roof across the street from the home noticed smoke coming from the one-story house. They ran to the home and woke three adults and an older child who were asleep and unaware of the smoke on their roof.

The fire department received multiple calls from residents who saw the smoke coming from the roof, said Las Vegas Fire Department spokesman Tim Szymanski.

Due to the heat, a second-alarm was issued and that brought a total of 20 units with 55 firefighters to the home. The fire was controlled within 20 minutes, Szymanski said.

Fire investigators believe an electrical short occurred on the rear side of the 1950s house where some electric boxes were mounted. The fire spread up the rear to the interior of the attic where it caused significant damage. The damage has been estimated at $100,000.

The family was not hurt but a firefighter was shocked while working on the roof of the house. He was treated and returned to work. The family has received temporary housing with the help of the American Red Cross.

Plea entered in murder case

The 21-year-old Las Vegas man charged with killing a UNLV student pleaded not guilty to murder charges Wednesday in District Court.

During his arraignment before District Judge Donald Mosley, Jeremy Crozier pleaded not guilty to murder, robbery and stolen credit card charges in the death of his former girlfriend, Rie Shibuya, 24.

Crozier is being held at the Clark County Detention Center without bail. His next hearing is scheduled for July 8.

Police said Shibuya's friends went to her apartment in the 1200 block of South Torrey Pines Drive to check on her and found her body in the living room wrapped in a sheet.

Autopsies show Shibuya was killed about two weeks before her body was discovered and that she'd died from strangulation.

Prosecutors will be meeting within the next few weeks to determine whether they will seek the death penalty against Crozier, Chief Deputy District Attorney David Schwartz said.

Woman sought in burglary of man, 85

Metro Police are looking for a 29-year-old Romanian woman suspected of swindling $200,000 in cash, jewelry, clothes, vehicles and furniture from an 85-year-old Las Vegas man.

Police believe Valdas Kasta, who might be using the names "Gina" or "Angie Hall," is tied to a group of transient criminals who have been committing distraction burglaries.

The suspects, usually with children in tow, knock on a residential door and when the homeowner answers, they ask to use the bathroom or use some other ruse to get into the house, Lt. Larry Spinosa said. Once inside the house, some of the suspects distract the resident while others go to different rooms, taking small items.

Anyone with information on Kasta or other members of her group are asked to call Metro's property crimes unit at 385-5555.

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