Today was a sad day for law enforcement here in Southern Nevada.
It started out like many other calls, a domestic disturbance with a man accused of beating his girlfriend. But this one was different. When the [Las Vegas Metropolitan Police] officer arrived at the home in the southwest valley near Durango [Drive] and Russell [Road], police say that officer realized he was dealing with a violent suspect and would need assistance.The officer called for backup, but then the suspect attacked, shooting the officer with an assault rifle and killing him. He is the first Metro officer to be shot to death in the line of duty in 18 years.
An off duty officer on his way to work responded. When that officer arrived, he saw that the first officer had been shot. The suspect fired at the second officer who returned fire hitting and killing the suspect, but not before he was shot three times in the leg.
Tonight, vigils are being held at University Medical Center and Metro Police headquarters. A press conference with Clark County Sheriff Bill Young is in progress as of this entry.
Updates to follow…
Update: The fallen officer was Sgt. Henry Prendes, a 14-year Metro veteran. Prendes, 37, was the first officer to die in service to Metro the first officer shot and killed in the line of duty since 1988.
Heartfelt condolences are extended to the Prendes family, and to the officers of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department in their time of mourning.
Update 2: Review-Journal article
Update 3: Information on the gunman:
The violent shootout leaves many questions about the gunman — Amir Rashid Crump — and why he suddenly and violently turned on those around him.
Amir Crump’s family is in shock. Friends say that something must have snapped in his mind. The rap artist on the brink of success was known by most of them as calm.
Jeff Hoyt said, “I think that what happened is that he got really scared and what he thought is that, ‘I crossed a line and I don’t know how to cross back.’ He probably just got really scared and now ‘I am going to go to jail and I don’t want to go to jail’ and something just clicked that we didn’t even really know was there to click. You know, to break”.
It appears that Crump didn’t just snap and went berserk. He rapped about the gangster lifestyle. He wore a bulletproof vest out of fear of gang retribution. The AR-15 rifle he used to kill Prendes was probably acquired under the table (which will probably spark more anti-gun debate as a result). His neighbors repeatedly called Metro to report disturbances of the peace coming from his house, including the beating of his girlfriend — to which Prendes responded to, not knowing that Crump was waiting and ready to kill any cop arriving on the scene.
There’s a website where fans of his rap group are leaving condolences. Sadly, none of those condolences mention the tragic loss of Metro Police Sgt. Henry Prendes.
And none of those postings condemn Crump for the batterer and cop killer he was.
(hat tip to ewink for clarifications)
Related: LVMPD Fallen Officers
Just a clairification, DC, but he was the first officer shot and killed in the line of duty since 1988. Two other officers have died while on duty, Donald C Weese in a traffic accident and Russell Peterson, in a training accident.
LVMPD has a fallen officers memorial page at http://www.lvmpd.com/Police_Memorial/Fallen_Officers/
It’s a sad day for the community as a whole. Sgt. Prendes died protecting all of us who live in Clark County, and we should never, ever forget that or him.
My only solace is the fact the punk who did this got what was coming to him.
I should review before I post. Weese was killed in 1992 and Peterson in 1998.
Thanks for the clarification.
People never just “just snap and went berserk.” Blame the media for phrases like these. It’s so much easier than looking for the real reason. My heart goes out to Officer Prendes family.