Firearms instructor charged with murder after shooting suspected car thief

A Las Vegas Valley firearms instructor has been charged with murder in the shooting of a suspected car thief outside a central valley warehouse in February, according to police and court records.

Carlos Viana, 34, was booked at the Clark County Detention Center Monday on a single count of murder with use of a deadly weapon. A Las Vegas police arrest warrant filed on Feb. 22 indicates the charge stems from the Feb. 13 shooting of Stanley Marks, 38, in the 4600 block of Valley View Boulevard.

Police said Marks was shot at around 12:30 p.m. outside of a warehouse. The warrant for Viana, meanwhile, describes him as a firearms instructor and possessor of a federal firearms license.

Before heading to work, Viana told police he was picking up several firearms from his office when he heard his car start outside.

He ran outside and saw Marks in the Mercedes, starting to drive away. Viana then told police Marks started driving in his direction, according to the warrant.

“Viana stated he was thinking ‘I need to make this guy stop,’” police said in the warrant.

Viana fired two shots at Marks, who later died at an area hospital. In the warrant, police looked at surveillance video that showed Viana was “out of the vehicle’s path” when he fired at Marks.

Police said in the warrant Viana was on the driver’s side of the vehicle at the time of the shooting and “out of the vehicle’s path” as it moved forward. He then went into the office and called 911.

Viana told police he didn’t know Marks and wasn’t sure if he was armed at the time of the shooting, though a few firearms were in the vehicle.

He posted bail on March 30 and has a court date set for May 17, according to court records.

Contact Glenn Puit by email at gpuit@reviewjournal.com. Follow @GlennatRJ on Twitter. Contact Jonah Dylan at jdylan@reviewjournal.com. Follow @TheJonahDylan on Twitter.