Tuesday, June 17, 2003 | 9:49 a.m.
When Metro Police ran across a terminally ill convicted killer who allegedly had said he wanted to shoot officers, he had just the weapon to carry out that kind of plan, police said.
When 26-year-old Sammy Moten allegedly pointed his AK-47 assault weapon at police Monday, an officer shot him. Moten underwent surgery at University Medical Center for a gunshot wound in the torso, Lt. Tom Monahan said.
Moten is recovering and when he is discharged, he will be booked into Clark County Detention Center on a charge of attempted murder of a police officer, Monahan said.
It was the second case in two days in the Las Vegas Valley that involved assault weapons. The sale of new assault weapons to the public and production of assault weapons were banned by the U.S. government in 1994. That law will expire in September 2004 unless it is renewed by Congress and signed by President Bush.
In the meantime, there are numerous rapid-fire assault weapons that were manufactured and sold prior to the ban that remain on the streets, law enforcement officials have noted. Shells from an assault weapon were found on the ground after a fatal shooting Sunday afternoon in the 1900 block of West Helen Avenue, near West Carey Avenue and Martin Luther King Boulevard, Officer Justin Roberts of North Las Vegas Police said.
In that case, Marcel Travel Jackson, 27, of Inglewood, Calif., was killed when an alleged gang rival sprayed bullets at the gray Cadillac in which Jackson was riding. The driver of the car, a 30-year-old man, was shot in the hand. No arrests have been made.
Lt. Cindy Galindo of Metro's gang unit said the use of assault weapons didn't appear to be an emerging trend, however.
Last week North Las Vegas Police sent an e-mail to Metro warning officers that Moten had been diagnosed with terminal cancer and planned to shoot police officers before he died. The e-mail also said he reportedly had an AK-47 assault rifle.
"I'm guessing he doesn't like the police," Monahan said. "There are a lot of people who don't like us."
Moten, believed to be a gang member, was convicted in 1994 of manslaughter and sentenced to three years in prison, according to court records. In 1999 he was convicted of being an ex-felon in possession of a firearm.
About 12:45 a.m. Monday, two officers assigned to Metro's gang crimes unit spotted Moten while patrolling the 2000 block of Lake Mead Boulevard. He was in the parking lot of the Buena Vista apartment complex holding an assault rifle, Monahan said.
The officers got out of their car and approached him. Moten turned and pointed the rifle at them, and one of the officers fired two shots, Monahan said. Moten was struck once in the side.
Moten ran and hid in an empty apartment. SWAT officers and crisis negotiators were called. Monahan said "there was never any dialogue" between Moten and the police who were trying to coax him out.
Four hours later, about 4:45 a.m., SWAT officers forced their way into the apartment and took Moten into custody.
"He didn't put up any resistance," Monahan said.
The name of the officer involved in the shooting will be released Wednesday, in accordance with Metro's policy of withholding names of police involved in shootings for 48 hours.
Monday's shooting was the fifth involving a Metro officer this year. Two people have been killed by Metro officers this year.
The last officer-involved shooting was June 5, when four Metro officers shot at a man who police say drove his car toward them in the parking lot of the Capri Motel downtown. That man is recovering from his injuries at UMC.
While officers were trying to get Moten out of the apartment, other SWAT officers and crisis negotiators were at the Desert Moon Motel at 1701 Fremont St. attempting to persuade a triple-murder suspect from Minnesota to surrender.
Benjamin Kennedy, 29 is suspected of killing three people in late May in Pillager, Minn., outside of Minneapolis. Two of the victims had been shot in the head and one had been beaten to death. The slayings are believed to be drug-related.
A warrant for Kennedy's arrest was issued two weeks ago, charging him with three counts of second-degree murder.
Minnesota investigators tracked Kennedy to the Desert Moon and notified Metro about 11 p.m. Sunday. Crisis negotiators tried for several hours to talk with Kennedy, but had no luck, Monahan said.
When SWAT officers forced their way into the room about 2 a.m. Monday, they found Kennedy dead of self-inflicted knife wounds. He reportedly slashed his own throat and stabbed himself in the chest.
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