FEB. 11 UPDATE: The Clark County Coroner has identified the deceased man as 39-year-old Demarko Montez Henderson from Las Vegas. Henderson's death was due to a gunshot wound to the head and was ruled a suicide.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department has identified the officers involved in the incident from earlier this week:
- Officer Cunningham is 46 years old and has been employed with the LVMPD since 2018. He is assigned to the Community Policing Division, Enterprise Area Command.
- Officer Papazian is 39 years old and has been employed with the LVMPD since 2014. He is assigned to the Community Policing Division, Enterprise Area Command.
Both officers have been placed on routine paid administrative leave pending the outcome of a review.
ORIGINAL STORY
LAS VEGAS (KTNV) -- Las Vegas police say an armed man barricaded inside an apartment was found dead by authorities after SWAT entered the building on Tuesday.
According to Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Captain Sasha Larkin, officers responded to an apartment complex on East Silverado Ranch Boulevard near Pollock Street, between Bermuda Road and Maryland Parkway, just after 10 a.m. on a reported domestic disturbance call.
#BREAKING: @LVMPD says the armed man who barricaded himself was found dead when SWAT officers got inside the apartment. Unclear whether the man killed by the officers' gunfire or did it himself. @KTNV
— Jeremy Chen (@JeremyChenKTNV) February 10, 2021
Arriving officers made contact with a woman who was on a second-floor landing outside of an apartment. While they were talking to her, police say a man opened an apartment door and began shooting in their direction.
Larkin said officers then returned gunfire and the man went back into the apartment. Later, he opened fire at officers but this time through an apartment window, and once again officers returned gunfire.
Meanwhile, beginning around 11:30 a.m., the Clark County Fire Department says it received reports of smoke coming from the apartment.
A high-level fire response was dispatched, the fire department says, but fire crews were advised to stay out of the building due to the ongoing barricade. CCFD says the smoke dissipated but the agency stayed at the scene.
We’re now seeing smoke coming out of the apartment complex now. Unclear if this is related to the barricade situation. @KTNV pic.twitter.com/Yz8jR6kTiF
— Jeremy Chen (@JeremyChenKTNV) February 9, 2021
Then, just before 2 p.m., a fire was seen in the second-story apartment window.
With police protection, CCFD says crews knocked the main body of the fire down from the outside of the building.
Once most of the fire was knocked down, LVMPD SWAT officers went in to clear the apartment and found the armed man dead inside.
It is not clear at this time how he died.
The coroner's office will release his identity and cause of death.
Fire crews also entered the apartment to put out the rest of the fire, which was contained within the affected apartment and did not extend into the adjacent units.
According to CCFD, no fire-related injuries were reported.
The cause of the fire has not been determined yet and remains under investigation, as is the shooting.
This is the second shooting involving LVMPD in 2021. The identity of the officers involved will be released after 48 hours.
This apartment complex where an armed man is barricaded is next door to Silvestri Jr. High School for those wondering where this is all happening. @KTNV
— Jeremy Chen (@JeremyChenKTNV) February 9, 2021
Anyone with any information is asked to contact the LVMPD Force Investigation Team at 702-828-8452. To remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 702-385-5555 or submit a tip online at crimestoppersofnv.com
Watch a 1:30 p.m. update from police below:
This is what the scene looked like around 11:45 a.m.:
Stay with 13 Action News for updates on this developing story
