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Police tried overdose-reversal drug on man who died in custody

Updated October 23, 2020 - 1:21 pm

A man suffering a medical crisis at a car dealership Monday died in police custody despite officers administering a drug used to reverse opioid overdoses, Las Vegas police announced Friday.

Gerrod Belin, 33, died while handcuffed after police were called about 1:40 p.m. Monday to the dealership on the 5500 block of West Sahara Avenue, near Decatur Boulevard. Belin had allegedly “battered several employees,” Assistant Sheriff Christopher Darcy said during a news conference Friday.

Sgt. Matthew Vorce, 43, gave Belin a dose of Naloxone, also known as Narcan, because he believed Belin was having an overdose.

“Unfortunately in this case, the Narcan did not work,” Darcy said. “The preliminary toxicology report shows that this individual had a stimulant in his system, and not an opioid.”

The county coroner’s office, which is closed on Fridays, has not released Belin’s cause and manner of death.

Nalaxone is used to temporarily stop life-threatening effects of opioid overdoses, but will not reverse overdoses from other drugs including alcohol or stimulants, such as cocaine and amphetamines, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.

Before police were called to the car dealership, Belin entered the business with “an unknown bag in his hand” and began “rambling incoherently” and hitting multiple employees, Capt. Sasha Larkin said Monday.

When the sergeant arrived with two other officers — Osvaldo Rincon and Jose Cabada, both 24 — they found four people holding Belin on the ground facedown, Darcy said.

Cabada put Belin in handcuffs, and officers told people to back away and place Belin in “the recovery position, which is on his side with legs bent,” Darcy said. Vorce used the Narcan because Belin had dilated pupils, was not responsive and had a “white substance” around his mouth.

Medical personnel pronounced Belin dead at the dealership at 1:55 p.m., about 15 minutes after the 911 call, Darcy said. Police said he suffered from schizophrenia.

About 250 Metro officers are trained to use Narcan, Darcy said. The training includes “when to use it and how to use it,” including how to recognize when a person is experiencing an opioid overdose.

Police are searching for two of the four customers who restrained Belin before his death. The two men left the dealership before police could talk to them, Darcy said.

“We did not get a statement from them, and we are asking them to come forward,” he said.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.

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