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Murder charge dropped against student in Vegas hotel room death

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LAS VEGAS >> A murder charge was dropped and a student from Latvia was freed from a Las Vegas jail after claiming self-defense in a fight that left a man dead in a casino hotel room.

Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson said Thursday there was insufficient evidence to prosecute 22-year-old Matejs Balodis.

Defense attorney Richard Schonfeld says Balodis planned to return to Europe after his release from jail.

Balodis was arrested about 6:30 p.m. Monday after 55-year-old Sherman Dale Lamb was found bloody and unconscious in a room the two checked into earlier that day at the South Point Casino.

Lamb died at a hospital.

Balodis told police he met Lamb during a travel layover at McCarran International Airport and fought Lamb after Lamb tried to rob him.

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