Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Henderson:

Spa customer impersonated officer after being denied sexual favor, authorities say

Lawrence DiVetro

Lawrence DiVetro

Police have arrested a man accused of pretending to be a cop after trying to solicit sex from a massage therapist at a Henderson spa.

The employee at Sunset Spa, 4451 E. Sunset Road, told detectives she was giving Lawrence DiVetro, 44, a massage about noon Jan. 23 when he asked her for sex, according to Henderson Police officials. After she refused, DiVetro allegedly identified himself as an officer and tried to arrest her.

DiVetro, who is not a police officer, reportedly then told the employee that he was going to speak with his supervisor and walked out of the business. He did not return.

The woman told police that she heard police scanner chatter coming from his cell phone.

DiVetro was pulled over Wednesday — and he allegedly had a gold badge and handcuffs on the seat of his car.

Police said DiVetro denied going to Sunset Spa but admitted to pretending to be a cop “to prevent a crime after he was offered sexual favors.” He was arrested and booked into the Henderson Detention Center on charges of impersonating an officer, burglary and kidnapping. DiVetro was released Thursday on $21,000 bail.

DiVetro is the second person in as many months accused of impersonating an officer in the Las Vegas Valley.

Metro Police say Mark Picozzi, 48, pretended to be a cop to force two escorts into having sex with him on the Las Vegas Strip during two unrelated incidents in January.

Picozzi was arrested Jan. 30 after a woman who was arrested on an outstanding warrant mentioned she had been sexually assaulted. The next week another woman recognized Picozzi’s photograph in news reports about his arrest and made a similar outcry to police.

Henderson detectives are investigating three other similar incidents that happened in recent weeks at massage parlors in that city. DiVetro has not been tied to them.

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