Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Two North Las Vegas officers fired over false report

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Mark Alan Miles

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James F. Balelo

Two North Las Vegas police officers who were arrested in January after they were accused of filing a false report stemming from a December incident in which a man was tossed from a casino have been terminated from the force.

Mark Alan Miles and James F. Balelo, both 27, are no longer employed by the city of North Las Vegas, a statement from the North Las Vegas Police Department said.

The details of an administrative investigation into on-duty misconduct were not released, but the investigation has concluded, said Officer Chrissie Coon, spokeswoman for the North Las Vegas Police Department.

The conclusion of the administrative investigation is independent from a criminal prosecution, which is now in the hands of District Attorney David Roger's office.

Miles, who had been with the department for a year when he was arrested, was booked for filing a false report by a public officer, a gross misdemeanor, and for a felony charge of oppression under color of office. Balelo was booked on one count of false report by a police officer.

The criminal complaint alleges that Miles and Balelo responded at 11:45 p.m. Dec. 6 to a report of an uncooperative person detained by security at the Cannery Casino, 2121 E. Craig Road. When Miles and Balelo arrived at the casino, they found a 31-year-old California man secured and handcuffed in a security holding cell.

The man was under citizen arrest by security guards at the time for causing a disturbance in a casino bar, refusing to leave and waving a beer bottle that was alleged to be a potential weapon, according to the complaint.

Miles and Balelo took the man into custody and booked him into the North Las Vegas Detention Center for assault with a deadly weapon and resisting arrest.

The criminal complaint alleges that during the arrest, Miles committed oppression under the color of office by using physical force and threat of physical force by arresting a person and holding him against his will. The man was injured when he was thrown still handcuffed to a floor during the arrest, the complaint said.

The criminal complaint also alleges that Miles and Balelo committed false reporting by a public officer in written reports that contained an inaccurate account of their actions and the actions of the suspect while in a holding cell.

The officers were arrested on warrants obtained after a criminal investigation by the North Las Vegas Police Department.

An internal complaint initiated by a North Las Vegas police supervisor on Dec. 7 led to the arrest.

The investigation included interviews of people involved and examination of evidence, including a surveillance tape recording the incident, which resulted in warrants issued for the officers' arrests.

Miles and Balelo had been on paid administrative leave during the investigation.

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