LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — It's been more than seven years since his daughter was murdered in southwest Las Vegas. However, Steve Land said he is still holding out hope that her cold case will be solved.
"She was a very special girl. Full of life, enthusiasm, always willing to help other people," Land said.
That's how he remembers his daughter Sydney. For the first time, he's telling Channel 13 about what he remembers in the days leading up to her death. Land said in 2016, his 21-year-old daughter was working at the Palm Restaurant Las Vegas in Caesars Palace and was doing well.
"She had a great job and as far as I know, she was doing really good."
However, that all changed on Oct. 26, 2016. Sydney and her boyfriend's lives were cut short by a gruesome crime. Metro police said the following day, a friend went to The Union Apartments on S. Hualapai Way near Flamingo Road. The friend found Sydney and her 20-year-old boyfriend Nehemiah Kauffman dead and called police.
"I got a phone call with panic that, you know, she's been killed," Land said.
Police said both were shot in the head at close range. Steve, who is a Clark County firefighter, said he arrived at the scene and found himself on the other side of the police tape.
"And when I pulled up, and they saw my face, and I saw their face, they just knew."
Police said a person of interest that was identified early on was Shane "Suga" Valentine, who knew Kauffman and is a convicted felon. Kauffman was also known as "Neo" and police said he had a history of being involved in burglaries and selling drugs. Valentine was accused of shooting up the home of Kauffman's mother 20 days before the double-homicide. However, he has never been charged in this case.
Throughout the course of the investigation, police said they believe two people committed the crime.
"Ultimately, we need to find who did this, who killed 'Neo.' If we find out who killed 'Neo,' we'll find out who killed Sydney and vice versa," Land said.
Then, matters surrounding the case and its investigation got complicated.
Valentine was also accused of trying to lure Las Vegas Judge Melanie Tobiasson's daughter into prostitution. During that time, Tobiasson became friends with Sydney's mother, Connie, who fought for justice in this case from 2016 until her death in 2022. Connie believed her daughter was also being lured into that lifestyle. She spoke with us six years ago about her daughter's death.
"Seared. That day seared in my mind," Connie told Channel 13. "It's very difficult because I know that there are people out there that know who did this."
Judge Tobiasson was eventually accused of meddling in the case and trying to get confidential information on the case. Both Tobiasson and Connie would later die by suicide, Connie in August 2022 and Tobiasson last January. Foul play has never been suspected.
As for the double-homicide, Metro police said it remains an open investigation.
"I've met with the detectives in the past couple of months, and for an hour and a half, and we've discussed the case," Land said. "Nobody is gonna, I guess, snitch. There's no one that's willing to step forward and say what really happened."
This is one of more than 1,500 cold cases Metro is currently trying to solve. The department has one sergeant, three full-time detectives, and four part-time investigators within its cold case unit. Det. Terri Miller said they remain focused on justice for the families.
"I would want someone to move heaven and earth to make sure that they did not give up in trying to find who did this," Miller said.
Land said he is hoping the truth about his daughter's death will come to light one day.
"I have her cell phone on my nightstand, you know, just waiting for someone to maybe confess. I don't know," Land said.
"Those are little things that, that, it's hard as a parent, you know, to lose a child."
If you have any information on the murders of Sydney Land and Nehemia Kauffman, please call Crime Stoppers at (702) 385-5555 or online at crimestoppersofnv.com.
