Two off-duty firefighters arrested in casino fight

Two off-duty Clark County firefighters were arrested Friday morning after beating a man at a casino, sending him to the hospital, police said.

Colin P. Kelley, 32, and Ali Jahanfard, 30, were taken to the Clark County Detention Center about 5 a.m., said officer Bill Cassell, Las Vegas police spokesman. Both men were charged with one felony count of battery with substantial bodily harm. Jahanfard also was charged with an additional count of battery, Cassell said. Both posted bail and were released from the detention center Friday afternoon.

The two men were with female companions Thursday night at Cherry nightclub at Red Rock Resort when the women they were with got into an argument with another of the club's female patrons. The disagreement escalated and the two firefighters ended up fighting with the female patron's husband, said another police spokesman, officer Jose Montoya.

"He was beat up pretty bad," Montoya said.

The man who was injured, whose name was not released by police, was taken to University Medical Center about 11:30 p.m. Thursday with a large cut near his throat, Montoya said. He was released Friday afternoon.

"They are both really good firefighters," said Scott Allison, spokesman for the Clark County Fire Department. "We never had a problem with these guys."

Kelley and Jahanfard were put on administrative leave with pay pending an internal investigation, Allison said.

When there is a violation of conduct, the fire chief has three choices, Allison said. An employee can be put on administrative leave with pay, placed on administrative leave without pay, or moved to a desk job away from the public until the investigation is complete.

All Clark County firefighters are expected to abide by a code of ethics at all times, Allison added.

"We try to be leaders in our community; we try to be role models for younger people that live here in Southern Nevada," he added.

Both firefighters joined the department in January 2001. They attended rookie school together, Allison said. Jahanfard had just returned from a leave of absence this week after being injured in a motorcycle accident, he said.

"They are human. They make mistakes. I don't know what the situation was with the altercation ... regardless, they should have thought twice before they acted," Allison said. "They will be dealt with."