Escaped Nevada inmate used dummy and acid before trying to flee to Tijuana, authorities say

LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Surveillance video from Las Vegas Shuttles near Nellis and Bonanza shows Porfirio Duarte-Herrera approaching the counter late Wednesday night and handing over a fake ID to check in for a trip he'd booked to Tijuana the day before.

Manager Gabriel Delgadilo says the dispatcher recognized the inmate from a flier police had given them and gave him a call. Delgadilo checked the surveillance from home and called 911.

He says it's a good thing police put the word out when they did, because Duarte-Herrera had tried to buy a ticket to Mexico for Tuesday night — but luckily that ride was full.

"We're happy to have helped for the family of the original victim, right?” Delgadilo said. “They must have been very worried that this guy was out there again, so it's good to know we brought some peace to them directly and to the community in general."

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department says they first learned of Duarte-Herrera's escape at the same time as everyone else — Tuesday afternoon.

Capt. Branden Clarkson says they immediately reached out to the inmate's past associates and were able to place him near Nellis and Bonanza through surveillance videos Monday evening, where he's seen being dropped off by an unidentified car.

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Sheriff Joe Lombardo says the fact that he'd been missing since Friday but nobody told anyone until Tuesday hampered their efforts.

"Four-day head start. It's not difficult if we know in short order. We are used to working as a team. We have been successful years past and in current investigations in apprehending suspects," Lombardo said.

Lombardo says the police force, U.S. Marshals, and FBI all jumped into action and got the job done.

He did, however, acknowledge that this points to glaring issues within the Nevada Department of Corrections that need to be addressed.

Fraternal Order of Police founder Paul Lunkwitz says Duarte-Herrera used a dummy as a decoy and used battery acid to corrode away the frame of his cell window. Lunkwitz says the inmate then hopped over or went through a border fence at Southern Desert Correctional Center in Indian Springs.

On top of that, Lunkwitz says the guard tower overlooking Duarte-Herrera's cell was unmanned — and had been that way for years.

Lombardo says he's been in constant contact with the State Inspector General to identify and rectify problems within the Department of Corrections.

Gov. Steve Sisolak, Lombardo's Democratic opponent in the race for governor, called the failures "unacceptable" and ordered an investigation on Tuesday.

Thursday, he had a fiery response to how all of this was handled:

"It seems like I didn't get the whole story. All of that is under investigation in terms of not just what happened, in terms of how it was communicated to me and to law enforcement, and to the general public.” Sisolak said. “We will get to the bottom of what happened and appropriate action will be taken against anybody that was involved in it. Believe me."

Lombardo says DOC officials were invited to come to LVMPD Headquarters and take questions during Thursday's press conference, but nobody showed up. The sheriff says he doesn't know why the invite went unanswered.