Seattle police officer ID’d as Vegas Strip stabbing victim
LAS VEGAS >> An argument led to the weekend stabbing death on The Las Vegas Strip of a Seattle area police officer, authorities said today.
Las Vegas Police say the Saturday night incident on a pedestrian bridge culminated from an altercation over dogs.
They say the suspect, 58-year-old Freddy Allen, has been booked on suspicion of murder with a deadly weapon. He refused to go to his initial court appearance today, Las Vegas’ KLAS-TV reported.
It was not immediately known if he had an attorney who could speak for him.
Las Vegas Police say the Clark County coroner will determine the victim’s identity.
However, the police department in Edmonds, 15 miles north of Seattle, said on their Facebook page that the victim was Officer Tyler Steffins and he was off-duty at the time.
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Officers first at the scene found Allen wielding a knife. They say he tried to flee but was arrested.
According to an arrest report obtained by KLAS-TV, a man accompanied by Allen claims Steffins was petting his dogs in an aggressive manner. The man also says he had a similar interaction with the victim the night before.
Allen and this other man got into an argument with Steffins. That’s when Allen allegedly stabbed him in the chest, police said.
Steffins was rushed to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Edmonds Police say Steffins had been with the department since August 2018. He leaves behind a wife and two young children.