The 30-year-old officer was a Marine veteran who had served with Metro since November 2023.
LAS VEGAS, NV — A Las Vegas police officer and an armed suspect were killed Tuesday after gunfire erupted outside an east valley business, Sheriff Kevin McMahill said.
Police were called shortly before 4 p.m. Aug. 4 to the 4500 block of East Tropicana Avenue, near Interstate 11 and Mountain Vista Street. A caller reported that a person who appeared intoxicated was waving a firearm at a business, according to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
Officers and police drones were sent to the area. McMahill said officers encountered the person and exchanged gunfire with the suspect. Authorities did not immediately provide a detailed account of who fired first, how many officers discharged their weapons or how long the confrontation lasted.
The officer, identified by police as a 30-year-old man, was seriously wounded during the exchange. Clark County firefighters, emergency medical workers and other officers treated him before he was taken to University Medical Center.
Doctors and nurses tried to save the officer, but he died at the hospital, McMahill said during a briefing outside the medical center. The sheriff said the officer had joined the department in November 2023 and had previously served in the U.S. Marine Corps.
The suspect died at the scene, police said. Authorities had not released the suspect’s name, age or other identifying information by early Wednesday. Police also had not disclosed what type of firearm was recovered or whether anyone else was injured.
McMahill said he went directly to the hospital after learning that the officer had been shot. He described a department and community grieving the death while investigators continued working at the shooting scene.
“As you can imagine, I have lots of grieving police officers, a grieving community,” McMahill said. “I came to see the officer and his family.”
The sheriff thanked the firefighters, emergency medical workers, officers and hospital staff members who tried to save the officer’s life. Investigators closed parts of the surrounding area as detectives gathered evidence and documented the scene.
Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo said the state had lost an officer in the line of duty. He offered condolences to the officer’s relatives, friends and colleagues and said the officer’s service would be remembered.
Clark County Commission Chair Michael Naft also expressed condolences and said flags at county buildings would be lowered in the officer’s honor. Police departments and public agencies across Southern Nevada issued messages of support for the officer’s family and the Metropolitan Police Department.
The shooting remained under investigation Wednesday. Police said additional information would be released as investigators confirm the sequence of events and notify the people involved. The department had not announced when it would publicly release body-camera video or other records from the confrontation.
Author note: Last updated Aug. 5, 2026.