A suspect was found dead in a stolen van in Las Vegas after killing his mother and starting a fatal carjacking spree that ended soon after the police opened fire on the van, authorities said Wednesday.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) officers responding to multiple reports of shootings at about 3:46 am Wednesday heard gunshots at the scene and took cover as one of their patrol vehicles came under fire multiple times, Capt. Joshua Martinez said in a video statement. The suspect stole an LVMPD patrol car and fled the area, triggering a police chase.
The suspect abandoned the patrol car approximately nine miles into the chase, allegedly carjacked a motorist, and fled in the stolen vehicle as a second police chase ensued. The suspect allegedly carjacked another motorist at gunpoint some 2.5 miles into the second chase, and an officer fired at the suspect.
The suspect fled in the stolen vehicle, Capt. Martinez said. Shortly, the suspect fatally shot another motorist, hauled him out of his van, and drove off in the van. Officers fired a salvo of shots at the van as the suspect fled, but soon the van came to a stop. Officers approached the vehicle and found the suspect injured. A medical team arrived and pronounced the suspect dead, Capt. Martinez added.
The dead motorist, 39-year-old Jerry Lopez, was leaving for work at the time of his death, The Associated Press reported. (RELATED: ‘Multiple Victims’ Reported After Shooting On UNLV Campus)
The suspect appeared to have had an altercation early that morning leading to the shootings in which his mother, who was in her fifties, was killed, Lt. Jason Johansson told reporters Wednesday, according to KTNV Channel 13 Las Vegas. The suspect, a male in his thirties, lived with his father and mother but had left the house that morning to go to a wash area a short distance from the home. The gunshots were heard from the wash, the suspect’s parents went down to the wash to look for the suspect, and that was when the mother was shot dead.
“It was not a random act,” Lt. Johansson added.