Gunman’s rifle malfunction prevented mass casualties at Las Vegas gym, police say
A mass casualty event was averted last week when a gunman’s rifle malfunctioned after he fired 24 rounds inside a northwest valley fitness center, police said Monday.
The shooter, identified by authorities as 34-year-old Daniel Ortega, killed one man and injured three other people before he was shot to death by responding Las Vegas police officers.
Ortega arrived at the Las Vegas Athletic Club at 1725 N. Rainbow Blvd. at 1:33 p.m. Friday, pacing near the entrance, then approaching an employee at the front desk. Another worker stepped up to speak with him but fled when Ortega raised his gun and started firing, Assistant Sheriff Jamie Prosser told reporters.
Prosser said Ortega had more magazines with ammunition on him, but his weapon failed after the 24 shots were fired.
“Fortunately, this gentleman had a malfunction in his weapon, which actually saved this from being a mass casualty event,” Prosser said at Monday’s briefing.
Ortega killed a gym manager, Edgar Quinonez. Police did not provide an update on the conditions of the other victims, but on Friday authorities said two had been taken to University Medical Center. One was in critical condition, and the other suffered injuries that were not life-threatening. Another person made it to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, police said.
Ortega was a member at the LVAC and worked out at that location, according to Prosser, who said police had not identified a motive.
Police arrived at the scene at 1:39 and hit Ortega with four rounds as he tried to flee the property with the rifle, according to police. He was taken to UMC, where he was pronounced dead, Prosser said.
Ortega would have been charged with one count of murder with a deadly weapon, three counts of assault with a deadly weapon on a protected person and five counts of assault with a deadly weapon had he survived, Prosser said.
Prosser said during the press conference that there was no connection between Ortega and Quinonez. She also said there did not appear to be any dispute between Ortega and the employees prior to the shooting.
She also shared body camera footage from the shooting, which showed officers arriving at the scene after Ortega stopped shooting. He was shot as he ran out of the gym, according to the videos.
‘Kind to everyone’
April Dianna, 31, dated Quinonez years ago and said the two kept in touch. Dianna struggled to process the news of his death.
“He was a great guy,” Dianna said. “He was very kind to everyone, and he was a very hardworking person.”
Dianna added that Quinonez grew up in Las Vegas, loving the Vegas Golden Knights and all things sports.
Another friend, Alejandro Perez, called Quinonez a “super positive person.” He said they met when he helped sign him up for a gym membership in 2016.
Two days after the shooting, Metro identified Kaid Urban, 29; Skeeter Black, 44; and Aaron Javier, 37, of the Bolden Area Command, as the officers who took down the gunman as he ran out of the building.
Urban has been employed with the department since 2020, Black has been employed with the department since 2015 and Javier since 2016, according to Metro.
Contact Akiya Dillon at adillon@reviewjournal.com. Contact Katie Futterman at kfutterman@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ktfutts on X and @katiefutterman.bsky.social.