Brysen Kim told detectives he had reported an ongoing dispute before Joey McLean was shot at a city facility.
LAS VEGAS, NV — A Las Vegas city employee accused of killing a co-worker told police the man had threatened him days earlier, according to an arrest report that describes a long-running workplace dispute before the Friday shooting.
Brysen Kim, 31, was booked on suspicion of open murder in the death of Joey McLean, a city maintenance worker who had worked for Las Vegas since May 2018. Police said the shooting happened around 6 a.m. June 12 at a city maintenance facility near North 7th Street and downtown Las Vegas. Kim and McLean worked for the city’s maintenance division, and investigators said the case grew out of a dispute that had been going on for months.
The arrest report says Kim was the first person to call 911 after the shooting. “We need police, I just shot someone. He threatened me,” Kim told the dispatcher, according to police. Officers arrived and found McLean bleeding inside an office building. Medical personnel pronounced him dead at the scene. Police said Kim was found in the parking lot and taken into custody. Las Vegas Mayor Shelley Berkley later identified McLean and said the killing had shaken city employees. Berkley said the city was working with Metropolitan Police as investigators continued to gather information.
Witnesses gave detectives a different account of the moments before the shooting, according to the arrest report. A supervisor said Kim entered the office as workers were preparing for their shifts, said something to McLean and punched him once in the side of the head. McLean fell to the floor, and Kim kicked him twice in the head, the report says. Two workers tried to stop Kim and move him away, but Kim pulled out a gun and fired two shots at McLean, according to witness statements summarized by police. Investigators have not said whether any weapon was found on McLean.
After first declining to speak with detectives, Kim asked for another interview while he was waiting to be booked at police headquarters, the report says. Kim told detectives the conflict began in January after a tailgate fell off the back of a city truck while workers were lifting it. He said he believed McLean had removed pins from the tailgate before the incident. Kim also told police there were two later incidents in which tailgates came loose from trucks while driving, and he suspected McLean was involved. Those claims remain allegations in the police report, and officials have not said whether they were substantiated.
Kim told detectives he filed several complaints through human resources and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. He said he asked not to work with McLean again and accused McLean of starting what he called a campaign of harassment. Kim alleged McLean pulled up next to him in traffic on June 8, said he was going to kill him and pointed a finger like a gun. The report also says another city worker told detectives McLean had sent after-hours text messages accusing Kim of using steroids and appeared to be trying to get a reaction from him.
Three city workers told police they knew of problems between Kim and McLean, according to the arrest report. One worker said there was documentation and witness information about the dispute and believed the workplace had failed both men. Another worker told investigators that he and a supervisor had planned to speak with McLean later June 12 about moving him to another yard to end the interactions with Kim. Police have not said whether city records, human resources files or OSHA complaints have been turned over to investigators. The City of Las Vegas said Kim’s employment status is leave without pay.
McLean, 41, was described by city officials as an eight-year employee. Berkley said in a statement that the city was mourning his death and thanked police for the swift response that led to Kim’s arrest. “This unspeakable act of violence has shaken our team,” Berkley said. City officials said employee assistance resources were being made available for workers after the shooting. Police have described the shooting as tied to a dispute between the two men, but detectives have not released a final finding on motive or on how the earlier workplace complaints were handled.
Kim appeared in court Tuesday, June 16. A judge ordered him to return Monday, June 22, for a bail hearing, and a preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 30. Prosecutors filed a criminal complaint, and the case remains in its early court stage. Police said the investigation remains active as detectives review witness statements, the 911 call, city records and any other evidence tied to the months before the shooting.
The case now stands as a homicide prosecution centered on a workplace dispute that investigators say escalated inside a city facility. Kim remains accused, not convicted, and his next scheduled court milestone is the June 22 bail hearing.
Author note: Last updated June 18, 2026.