LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — Henderson police have released new details and video footage following an officer-involved shooting that left a 48-year-old man dead after an hours-long multi-agency standoff near Eastern Avenue on Saturday night.
The suspect, identified by authorities as Ropati Tauiliili, died at the scene after two Henderson Police Department SWAT officers fired simultaneously, according to HPD Deputy Chief Marco Segiri.
The incident began around 3:45 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 3, when Henderson police officers were dispatched to a home in the 2000 block of Club Crest Way, near Warm Springs Road and Green Valley Parkway, for a report of a domestic disturbance. Investigators learned Tauiliili entered through the backyard, battered several family members, pointed a firearm at them, and fled before police arrived.
At approximately 8:08 p.m., Henderson dispatch received multiple 911 calls reporting gunfire. Responding officers found an adult woman suffering from two gunshot wounds. Officers transported her to a local hospital, where she was treated and released.
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At some point, Tauiliili contacted his employer via text and a recorded phone call, stating he had shot at his family, refused to return to prison, and intended to force a fatal shootout with law enforcement, Segiri said. Tauiliili had previously served approximately 15 years in prison following a 1997 murder conviction in Hawaii.
Police later found over 200 rifle casings at the scene.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department officers, along with LVMPD air and drone units, located Tauiliili inside a cul-de-sac at a cemetery near Eastern Avenue in Las Vegas.
Officers from Henderson police, Metro, and the Clark County Office of Public Safety established a perimeter and blocked surrounding roadways.
According to police, Tauiliili was randomly firing his gun for about an hour in multiple directions at responding officers, bystanders, police aircraft, drones, and nearby structures, including a vehicle bumper belonging to a civilian who retreated safely.
Around 10 p.m., two Henderson officers shot at the suspect, striking Tauiliili. The officers rendered aid, but Tauiliili died at the scene.
Police identified the officers as Julian Diaz, a full-time SWAT officer with the department since 2019, and Thomas Whitney, a patrol officer and part-time SWAT member also with the department since 2019. This was the first officer-involved shooting for both officers, Segiri said. Both have been placed on routine paid administrative leave pending the investigation.
No police officers or bystanders were injured. The shooting marks the Henderson Police Department’s third officer-involved shooting and second fatal shooting of 2026.
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