News briefs for March 5, 2004

Friday, March 5, 2004 | 12:06 p.m.

Seven injured in five-car accident

Five cars collided and seven people were injured Thursday afternoon when a white Mitsubishi Montero ran a red light at Sunset Road and Annie Oakley Drive, police said.

The driver of the Mitsubishi was traveling east on Sunset at about 3:40 p.m. when the driver ran a red light, police said.

The Mitsubishi hit a vehicle traveling north on Annie Oakley and rolled onto its side. The driver of the other car then struck three cars sitting at the red light.

All seven passengers in the five-car accident had minor injuries and were taken to local hospitals, police said. No identities were available this morning.

Police dog helps corner escapee

North Las Vegas Police cornered and captured a federal prisoner Thursday night after he jumped a wall at the North Las Vegas Detention Center.

Vincent Franco, 43, a member of the Hells Angels, escaped the detention center on foot at 8:45 p.m. Officers set up a large perimeter to try to find Franco.

At 10:10 p.m., a North Las Vegas police dog located Franco in a yard in the 2300 block of Carrol Street, about half a mile from the detention center, police said.

Police cornered Franco in the yard and took him into custody without incident.

Female's body found near Jean

A forensic anthropologist who is examining a skeleton found Feb. 13 near Jean has formed a preliminary opinion that the victim was female, between the ages of 16 and 22 and had given birth.

The body had been buried in a hole and was encased in concrete, which delayed its discovery, Lt. Tom Monahan of Metro's homicide section said.

Detectives are looking through missing persons files, he said.

A hiker was walking his dog in the area when his dog found what appeared to be a human bone. The body was found the next day.

Anyone with information on this victim is asked to call Crime Stoppers or the homicide section at 229-3521.

Deputy education chief selected

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Keith Rheault has named Gloria Dopf as his replacement for the position of deputy superintendent of instructional research and evaluative services for the Nevada Education Department.

Rheault, who held the deputy post prior to his appointment as superintendent by the Nevada Board of Education Feb. 21, announced Dopf's promotion Thursday.

A graduate of the City University of New York, Dopf has been with the state Education Department since 1977, most recently as director of special education and school improvement.

I-15 work at Lamb to begin

Work on the Interstate 15 interchange at Lamb Boulevard will cause ramp and road closures starting next week.

The $17.4 million project will construct a full single-point interchange at the location, replacing the current configuration of a southbound off-ramp and northbound on-ramp to I-15.

Due to the construction, the Lamb Boulevard on- and off-ramps to I-15 will be closed beginning noon Monday and will remain closed for the duration of the project, expected to be completed in May 2005.

The freeway will be closed at Lamb from 7 p.m. March 13 through 7 a.m. March 14 due to the construction.

The Nevada Department of Transportation advises drivers to use a detours at Craig Road to Las Vegas Boulevard to Apex. Drivers on I-15 southbound can exit at the Las Vegas Beltway.

NLV Police nab federal prisoner

North Las Vegas Police cornered and captured a federal prisoner Thursday night after he jumped a wall at the North Las Vegas Detention Center.

Vincent Franco, 43, a member of the Hells Angels and a convicted felon, escaped the detention center on foot at 8:45 p.m. Officers set up a large perimeter to try to find Franco.

At 10:10 p.m., a North Las Vegas K-9 police dog located Franco in a North Las Vegas yard in the 2300 block of Carrol Street, about half a mile from the detention center, police said.

Police cornered Franco in the yard and took him into custody without incident.

A jury convicted Franco last week for felony possession of a firearm, Natalie Collins, spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney's office, said. Police found two rifles and a pistol with an obliterated serial number in Franco's home after serving a search warrant Dec. 5.

Franco is scheduled to be sentenced May 14 for the firearm charges by U.S. District Court Judge Kent Dawson. Collins said the escape may be incorporated into his sentence or separate charges could be filed.

Standoff ends after eight hours

Metro Police ended an eight-hour standoff with a suspected car burglar early this morning by firing rubber balls and wooden baton rounds at him, police said.

The standoff began shortly after 9 p.m. Thursday after a woman in the 1900 block of Leonard Lane reported a man burglarizing her car. The woman told police the man had pointed a gun at her when she attempted to stop him.

The man took off on a moped when police arrived on scene, spokeswoman Carla Alston said, and eventually abandoned the vehicle and ran on foot. Police chased him to a home in the 1800 block of Shadow Mountain near Jones Boulevard and Vegas Drive.

The man, an ex-felon for burglary charges, held the gun to his head and threatened suicide for hours, Alston said.

"He said he wasn't going back to prison, and just woe is me, other personal problems," Alston said.

The man was transported to University Medical Center Trauma Center as a precaution after police shot him with the rubber balls and wooden batons, Alston said.

The man's name was not available this morning.