Officers shoot, kill man with knife in southeast Las Vegas, police say

Las Vegas police said a man armed with a knife was fatally shot by officers early Saturday morning in southeast Las Vegas after he advanced toward them with the weapon and failed to follow verbal commands to drop it.

The shooting occurred around 2:55 a.m. on the 3900 block of Landsdown Place, according to Metropolitan Police Department Capt. Joshua Martinez, who said in a video posted to Metro’s YouTube account that the details he was providing were preliminary.

Officers responded to a call about a missing male possibly armed with a knife, Martinez said.

Police arrived to find the male with the knife, and officers tried to disarm him but he refused to drop the weapon, he said.

“They attempted to deescalate the situation by giving him verbal commands and using low-lethal options,” he said. “The armed male advanced on officers, forcing them to discharge their duty weapons.”

Officers went to give him aid but medical responders soon pronounced him dead at the scene, the captain said.

Landsdown Place is near Interstate 515 and East Flamingo Road.

As part of department policy, the names of the officers involved will not be released for 48 hours and further details will be provided within 72 hours, Martinez said.

It was the seventh officer-involved shooting in Metro’s jurisdiction so far in 2023, he said.

Contact Jeff Burbank at jburbank@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0382. Follow him @JeffBurbank2 on X.