Man could face death penalty in slaying of UNLV student

Jen Lawson

Tuesday, June 17, 2003 | 9:24 a.m.

A 21-year-old man could face the death penalty if convicted of killing a 24-year-old UNLV student found dead in her off-campus apartment Friday, according to police and court records.

An autopsy performed on Rie Shibuya determined she had been dead for about two weeks and apparently had been strangled, according to a police report.

Jeremy A. Crozier was arrested Saturday and charged with the murder of Shibuya, an undergraduate majoring in hotel administration at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Police said Crozier is Shibuya's ex-boyfriend.

Chris J. Owens, chief deputy district attorney of Clark County, signed paperwork Monday reserving the right to seek the death penalty against Crozier.

Shibuya's friends went to her apartment in the 1200 block of South Torrey Pines Drive to check on her because they hadn't seen her in while, police said. The door and windows were locked and, at the request of Shibuya's friends, a property manager pried open the door about 1:15 p.m. Friday.

They found Shibuya, who lived alone, in the living room wrapped in a sheet, which was taped up, the police report said. Several cardboard boxes were taped together "in a manner that would indicate that the body was to be placed in them," according to the report.

The apartment looked as if the killer had tried to clean up, and some cleaning products were found near the body, police noted. Shibuya's car, a 1996 Nissan Sentra, was missing from the parking lot.

Shibuya's friends told police she had an ex-boyfriend, Crozier, who often came by to see her. Police released his name and photograph to the media. About 8 a.m. Saturday, Crozier flagged down a police cruiser in the 3900 block of East Sunset and surrendered to patrol officers. Crozier had a Louis Vuitton key ring with keys to Shibuya's apartment and car, according to the arrest affidavit.

At Metro's homicide office, Crozier, who police said is a transient, said he had last seen Shibuya on June 8 when he borrowed her car. He said he drove it to California and eventually broke down on Highway 93 in Lincoln County, Nevada, about 95 miles north of Las Vegas.

Crozier "was very nervous and cried when detectives left the interview room," the police report says. His statement was inconsistent and contradicted the evidence in the apartment.

An autopsy performed Saturday showed Shibuya had been dead for about two weeks and that trauma to her body was consistent with strangulation, but that further testing was needed.

After Crozier was told he was being arrested, he stopped talking and said he wanted a lawyer. He was booked into Clark County Detention Center, and is scheduled to make his first appearance in court this morning.