LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – Las Vegas police say they will discuss a police shooting that happened Christmas Eve where a suspect damaged a patrol car.
The shooting happened around 12:45 p.m. in east Las Vegas in the 3200 block of La Barca Lane. Police responded to call about a “property exchange.”
When police arrived, they met two people who said a man was inside a home and armed with a gun. Police made contact with the suspect to surrender, but he refused.
LVMPD Captain Kurt McKenzie said the suspect kept going in and out of the house multiple times. In one instance, he left and used a knife to puncture a Metro patrol vehicle’s tires and damage its windows.
The suspect also left a long gun on a stoop and later went back to retrieve it. Police used bean bag rounds to prevent the suspect from reaching the gun. As the suspect got closer, officer Christian Espinoza, fired his weapon.
Police say the gunfire did not hit the suspect.
McKenzie said a SWAT team came and took the man into custody without incident.
This is the 17th officer-involved shooting in LVMPD’s jurisdiction this year.
Police say Officer Espinoza is 32 years old and has been employed with LVMPD since 2020.
He is currently assigned to the Community Policing East Division, Southeast Area Command. He has been placed on routine paid administrative leave pending the outcome of a review of this incident.
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