LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The man accused of holding a woman hostage and barricading himself in a Caesars Palace hotel room on Tuesday is speaking out for the first time.
In a jailhouse interview with Channel 13, Matthew Mannix spoke with Channel 13 anchor Kelsey McFarland about the events that lead up to the barricade.
Mannix, who is native to Colorado, said he flew into Vegas on Saturday after he claims his friends called the police to report him for "bogus crimes" that he "did not commit."
"So I flew to Las Vegas, knowing that I'd be able to make money by playing poker, and I'd be able to get a hotel room. But I guess I couldn't handle the stress of being on the run because I freaked out," he said.
Court records from Colorado indicate that Mannix is wanted for crimes similar to those he committed during the barricade, including a kidnapping charge in 2022 and property damage in 2012.
"So I got a room at the Strat. They kicked me out because I tried to pet this woman's dogs in the lobby and she got really mad at me. And then I like played games with security, and then they kicked me out," he said.
From there, Mannix says he went back to the airport and almost returned to Colorado, but decided to make his way back to the Strip and even "slept on the roof of the Strat parking garage."
Mannix says by Monday morning, he was out of money, and decided to go to the MGM Grand where he says he met a woman named Anna, who he claims to be the woman he "was with" and is "in love with her."
While Las Vegas Metro police did not identify the woman held hostage in the hotel room, court documents reveal that Mannix is facing charges of kidnapping and coercion for what police are calling a "hostage situation."
Mannix claims the two of them got a room at Caesars Palace on Monday night, but on Tuesday morning, Mannix says he suddenly "started screaming."
Mannix: I was on a lot of drugs.
McFarland: What kind of drugs were you on?
Mannix: Weed, Kratom, Meth, and Speed
Mannix told Channel 13 that he's "not really sure what happened," but he does remember being surrounded by police and SWAT teams.
A police report indicated that Mannix claimed he was armed and would "kill somebody" if anyone attempted to enter the room. Mannix told Channel 13 that he was "having a panic attack" and just "wanted them to go away."
"I lost my mind. I'm not really sure why, and I wish I didn't because I ruined a really good thing," he said. "I just want to see Anna again, that's all."
Mannix claims that he had made plans with Anna to move out of the country and "get a fresh start."
He added, "She might be pregnant because we had sex when the cops were outside of the room."
Crisis negotiators at the scene say that they witnessed the woman "make a clear effort toward the door" of the room, but was intercepted by Mannix. He then reportedly body-slammed her to the bed and "began to have intercourse with her," according to an arrest report.
Mannix also claims he was never intending to hurt Anna, though officers at the scene reportedly witnessed him telling the woman he "would cut out her tongue" if she attempted to speak with police.
Police determined that both Mannix and the woman were "extremely high to the point of paranoia" at the time of their arrest. Drone footage captured by police also reportedly showed Mannix smoking from what "appeared to be a meth pipe" in the hotel room.
However, Mannix claims that it was "actually weed," though he claims he did do meth on Monday.
McFarland: So what was your plan?
Mannix: Basically, just to sort of freak out for a little while, then calm down and diffuse the situation, and have the employees allow us to leave the casino.
Mannix also says that he fully intended "to pay [the hotel] back for the damages."
During the barricade, the entire Caesars Palace property was on lockdown for 5 hours and the pool was evacuated after he began throwing furniture out the room's window, something Mannix says he "didn't want to happen."
"This town has had some pretty bad traumas in the past with the massacre and stuff like that. People are probably pretty concerned, they didn't know what was going on," he said. "I didn't want any of that to happen. And I'm very, very sorry."
McFarland: So it sounds like a bit of a pattern. In Colorado, you had a friend who was afraid and called the police on you. The woman at the Strat also called the police. And now, Anna is being considered a hostage, though you said you never wanted to harm anyone. How does this pattern keep happening?
Mannix: I think I'm misunderstood. I have a very intense personality and it can be misunderstood, and I think it can be interpreted as a threat. But it's not, because I didn't hurt anybody.
