Reward is set in LV slaying
Ashley Furniture is offering a $100,000 reward for information leading the arrest of the person who killed one of its managers in the parking lot of a Las Vegas store on the day after Thanksgiving.
A man wearing a ski mask and dark clothing shot Robert Bills in front of the Ashley Furniture HomeStore at 3130 N. Rainbow Blvd., near Cheyenne Avenue, about 6 p.m. Friday, Las Vegas police said.
Bills "was one of the nicest, sweetest individuals you would ever want to meet," said David Morris, general manager for Ashley Furniture HomeStores in the Las Vegas area.
The shooting occurred about two hours before the store was to close for the night. Although Bills was trying to leave the store to go to a bank to deposit the day's revenue, the suspect didn't get away with any money, police said. Why the suspect left empty-handed remained unclear Sunday night.
The store, which remained closed Saturday because of the shooting, reopened Sunday.
Bills was in his early 50s and had worked for the store for about one year, Morris said. Originally from Chicago, Bills was described as outgoing, talkative and well-liked.
Stephen Perez, Bills' next-door neighbor in the Amhurst community, near Durango Drive and Elkhorn Road, said Bills had lived in Las Vegas for about nine years and was the president of the neighborhood association.
He said Bills was instrumental in getting the "Amhurst" sign put in near the neighborhood's entrance. Bills didn't have any relatives in Southern Nevada but considered his neighbors and co-workers at the Ashley Furniture HomeStore his extended family, Perez said.
"He loved that job," he said, adding that Bills previously worked for USA Baby, a retail store for baby products.
One of Bills' closest friends was his dog Harley, a mutt he rescued from a dog pound. Morris said that after Bills' slaying, one of Bills' co-workers adopted the dog.
"I know Robert would have wanted him (Harley) cared for," Morris said.
Anyone with information about the killing can call police at 828-3521 or Crime Stoppers at 385-5555.
Contact reporter David Kihara at dkihara@ reviewjournal.com or (702) 383-4638.
