Street argument led to fatal gunfight in western Las Vegas, police say
Las Vegas police have arrested a 28-year-old man in connection with a deadly shooting Thursday in the west valley, the department announced Friday.
Police were called about 5:37 p.m. to the 5100 block of Del Monte Avenue, a residential area near the intersection of South Decatur and West Charleston boulevards, after callers reported multiple gunshots fired in the street, the Metropolitan Police Department said in a news release.
When officers arrived, they found a man in his early 30s in the street, suffering from at least one gunshot wound, homicide Lt. Ray Spencer said at the scene Thursday night. The man was taken to University Medical Center, where he died.
Gilberto Barrientos, 28, was arrested and booked into the Clark County Detention Center. He is charged with open murder, the release said.
Part of a news briefing from @LVMPD homicide Lt Ray Spencer at the scene of the fatal shooting Thursday night. #RJnow pic.twitter.com/6obC4CQ1oZ
— Katelyn Newberg (@k_newberg) January 18, 2019
The release said the victim and another adult male were passing by a residence and became involved in an argument with several peopl. The argument escalated and multiple people pulled out firearms and began shooting at each other.
No injuries were reported during the initial shootout, though multiple residences and vehicles were struck, the news release said. Spencer told reporters at the scene Thursday night that “probably in excess of 20” shots were exchanged.
But a short time later, the victim passed by the residence again and Barrientos exited the home and shot him, the release said.
The victim will be identified by the Clark County coroner’s office after his family has been notified.
Investigators interviewed multiple witnesses and residents at the “complex crime scene” Thursday night to piece together what happened, Spencer said.
The man’s death marked the fourth homicide that Metro has investigated in 2019, and the sixth in Clark County, according to Review-Journal records.
Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter. Review-Journal staff writer Kimber Laux contributed to this report.
