Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2005 | 11:04 a.m.
Monday's fatal shooting of a mentally ill Las Vegas man who kept Metro Police at bay for more than seven hours came after he had held two of his family members hostage in their small apartment since the night before, officers said.
It was a tragic culmination of what his alleged victims told police was a history of violence and anger that had worsened since his release from prison in August following an arrest on a home invasion charge, Capt. James Dillon of Metro's robbery-homicide section said.
The alleged captor was identified by the Clark County Coroner's office as Daniel Vincent Kloskowski, 33. He was shot and killed about 2 p.m. Monday after officers stormed the apartment on the 900 block of East Twain Avenue, between Paradise Road and Cambridge Street, where he had barricaded himself, his older brother and mother inside, Dillon said.
The tense standoff Monday was part of what police believe was a plan to kill his family members before killing himself, Dillon said.
The shooting capped Metro's 10th such standoff this year, Officer Jose Montoya, a Metro spokesman, said. It was one of 22 similar incidents in the department's jurisdiction in the past six months.
The standoff began about 5:15 that morning when a neighbor called police to report a loud argument inside the second-floor unit and a man breaking windows. During the hours that followed, officers used a public address system to attempt to negotiate with Kloskowski, who allegedly refused to answer both the phone inside the apartment and a portable phone police threw inside, Dillon said.
"The suspect never engaged in any meaningful dialogue, except for making threats he was going to kill his mother," he said. "The suspect's responses were just to yell out."
Metro detectives on Tuesday were investigating what prompted the altercation between Daniel Kloskowski and his family members, although he was believed to be prone to violent outbursts, Dillon said.
He had moved in with his mother a few weeks ago, and for reasons still under investigation had not allowed her or his brother, Michael Kloskowski, 36, to leave the apartment since Sunday evening, Dillon said.
Calls to Michael Kloskowski, the only person by that last name listed in multiple Clark County directories, were not answered Tuesday afternoon.
Daniel Kloskowski was believed to have been treated for mental illness, although family members told police he had stopped taking his medication before the standoff, Dillon said.
"There was information provided by the hostages and there was evidence at the scene that the suspect had been diagnosed and had been treated in the past for some form of mental illness," he said. "... There was not a single event that was determined to be the catalyst (for the standoff) but there is an indication he had missed taking his medication, which could have been a factor."
All three family members were living in the apartment when Daniel Kloskowski, who was on parole for his home-invasion conviction, held them hostage, he said.
A Metro SWAT team using an explosive device designed to distract Daniel Kloskowski broke down the front door after he threatened to kill his mother, Montoya said.
Inside, officers found his mother, Frances Kloskowski, 70, who was punched repeatedly in the head and face, along with at least one knife and hammer, Dillon said.
She was taken to Sunrise Hospital in serious condition but had been upgraded Tuesday to stable condition, he said. She is expected to remain in the hosital for several days.
Daniel Kloskowski was shot once and died at the scene, officers said. Michael Kloskowski was treated for a minor stab wound and was released from the hospital Tuesday morning.
The department spokesman said he could not comment on what kind of explosive was used or how much damage it caused. Lt. Larry Burns, who heads the department's SWAT unit, was unavailable for comment Tuesday afternoon.
The unit, one of the few that have access to such devices, routinely responds to standoff situations where the specialized tools are needed, Montoya said.
"Usually any time we have someone barricaded or a hostage situation, SWAT is the only one who will make entry," he said. "... And people with knives can still be violent. A knife is still considered a deadly weapon."
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