LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — A 66-year-old woman was killed right in front of her husband during a deadly crime spree on New Year's Eve in Las Vegas. Surveillance video taken in the parking garage of the Fashion Show Mall shows how suddenly this situation turned tragic.
It happened around 1:30 p.m., when a silver BMW arrived at the Fashion Show parking garage in front of Nordstrom and Dillard’s.
In the video, you can see the moment the car stops, and the suspect gets out of the passenger side of the car and walks toward the victim.
He tries to steal from the 66-year-old woman, but she refuses to let go of her purse. At that moment, the suspect shoots her, then gets back into the car, where the second suspect waited and drove off quickly.
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13 Action News looked at the video with Christopher Fry, the senior director of training for Progressive FORCE Concepts.
“My first thought is how busy this parking garage is. I mean, it looks like it is daytime, there are a lot of vehicles, a lot of people in the background,” Fry said.
Fry says day or night, it doesn’t matter. What happened to this couple can happen to anyone at any time. He says you must always be alert.
“You have to be aware," he said. "Don’t be tasked, fixated looking at your phone when you are walking through the parking lot. Don’t even be in deep conversation with the person you are with. Keep your head up and look around."
In situations like this, Fry says you must make the decision as to whether fighting or resisting is worth it. He says there shouldn’t be any possession that is worth risking your life or your loved one’s life.
“Anyone can look at that video and say it is highly unfortunate that the woman lost her life over a purse,” Fry said.
He says where this incident took place is known as a "transitional zone." These zones are the time between when you are in a safe place to the moment you are in a spot where you may be more vulnerable, like where this couple was.
He says during that time, be on high alert and even carry pepper spray or another option for self-defense.
