News briefs for April 8, 2005

Friday, April 8, 2005 | 9:37 a.m.

Bribes alleged in house arrests

A Las Vegas man, under contract with the state, has been arrested on charges of taking bribes for allowing a man to violate his house arrest in Southern Nevada.

Lt. Nicholas Lombardo of the state Department of Public Safety said Thursday that Henry M. Palmer, 42, was booked into the Clark County Detention Center Thursday and bail was set at $5,000.

Palmer was employed as a case manager by Securicor EMS Inc., which has a state contract to oversee people placed under house arrest by the judicial system.

Lombardo said Palmer is accused of accepting payments anywhere from $5 to $100 in about 10 instances in exchange for permitting the offender to go beyond the terms of his house arrest.

Authorities refused to provide information about the person who had been under house arrest. That person had not been found as of Thursday night.

The state is examining whether additional charges will be filed against Palmer.

Authorities said Securicor cooperated fully in the investigation.

188 months given in police standoff

A Henderson man who held police officers at bay during a daylong standoff last year was sentenced to 188 months in prison Thursday by a federal judge.

Jeffrey Michael Donnelly, 39, pleaded guilty to a charge of felon in possession of a firearm and was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge James Mahan.

Donnelly fired 17 shots during the 24 hour standoff in April 2004 after barricading himself in a home in Henderson. No one was hurt by the gunfire, and the Henderson Police SWAT team eventually stormed the home and arrested Donnelly.

Donnelly has multiple prior felony convictions in Florida and New York for aggravated assault, kidnaping, armed robbery and making a false statement to purchase a firearm.

Man's final wish fulfilled

A Bosnian native whose final wish was to become an American citizen died Thursday of cancer at a local hospice.

Faik Halilovic, 30, a Las Vegas resident for seven years, was a dealer at the Sahara hotel.

He was granted citizenship last week by a U.S. District Court judge, who came to his bedside at the Nathan Adelson Hospice and administered the oath to become a citizen.

Halilovic will be buried in Bosnia.

State helps in search for suspect

The state Department of Public Safety said Thursday it has joined with Mesquite Police in searching for a suspect accused of robbery, arson and attempted murder.

The department said Christopher Fletcher, 25, of Mesquite was still at large but that his alleged partner in crime Oscar Guzman, 21, of Mesquite has been arrested.

Fletcher and Guzman allegedly entered an apartment and beat and stabbed the resident. They took his stereo equipment and other items and then left in the victim's 1997 Saturn.

Fletcher allegedly returned to the apartment and started a fire in the living room. The victim, who was tied up in the bathroom, managed to escape but the fire destroyed three apartment units in the same building.

Fletcher, described as white, six feet tall and weighing about 200 pounds, is considered dangerous and may be driving a white 1987 Oldsmobile bearing one of two Nevada plates -- 725RHD or 358KDL.

Blanket causes power outage

A blanket blown onto a powerline near the County Government Center near downtown Las Vegas on Thursday night caused a brief power blackout at the center, a Nevada Power Company spokeswoman said.

The outage lasted from 6:35 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. and did not affect any other businesses in the area, Nevada Power spokeswoman Sonya Headen said.

Gusty winds were blowing between 15 mph and 25 mph at the time, the National Weather Service said.

Lane restrictions set for Flamingo

Clark County Department of Public Works crews will restrict traffic to one lane on eastbound Flamingo Road between Audrie Street and Paradise Road from 9 p.m. Friday to 2 p.m. Saturday.

The lane restrictions will permit the more than 44 construction trucks per hour that have to enter the area to lay new road.