Police: Couple, K-9 dead after shooting at Las Vegas home
LAS VEGAS » Two people and a police dog are dead and an armed assailant was wounded by police in a residential neighborhood in northwest Las Vegas, authorities said Thursday.
A man and a woman were found dead in a home after four officers were involved in the shooting in the street a few minutes before noon, Las Vegas police Capt. Shawn Andersen said.
Officers responding to reports of shots fired and a man waving a gun on Fast Elk Street deployed the K-9, a Belgian Malinois named Nicky, to try to subdue the suspect, Andersen said. The dog was fatally wounded.
Officers shot the alleged gunman, who Andersen said was taken to University Medical Center in Las Vegas with unspecified injuries.
Police were investigating if there was a prior relationship between the gunman and the two people who were found dead, Andersen said.
Names weren’t immediately made public.
The officers involved in the shooting weren’t injured. They were placed on paid leave pending departmental reviews, Andersen said.
The slain dog partnered with police Sgt. Eric Kerns, and had returned to duty just weeks ago after recovering from serious slash wounds received Feb. 12 while confronting a machete-wielding man barricaded in an apartment.
Kerns is a more than 13-year Las Vegas police veteran who was sent with a previous police K-9 partner to New York City as part of a Federal Emergency Management Agency team conducting search-and-rescue operations after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks at the World Trade Center site.
10 responses to “Police: Couple, K-9 dead after shooting at Las Vegas home”
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Nicky will rightly be honored as a hero. RIP
Vegas is a scam city that is deeply ill. Scary area.
How much time have you spent there? I go fairly often and I don’t agree with your assessment. Every city has problems and Las Vegas is no exception. On the other hand I see it as better run than most US cities, providing excellent infrastructure (schools, parks, etc.).
Should have shot him first before letting Nicky go after him. Good boy. Rest in Peace.
Did the officer think a dog could overpower a gun? Bad decision on his part.
The police are so afraid to shoot anyone now they send in a dog against an armed suspect that just killed two people, SAD.
Nicky had a bigger set than his handler. R.I.P. Nicky. You deserved better.
Agreed. Shoot first, then send the K-9 in. Bad choice on the officer’s part and it’s his fault.
Man’s best friend not doubt about it. Why did Nicky have to die and not the bad guy? All dogs go to heaven!
It’s so sad that a dog’s life has to be sacrificed! Wished they didn’t have to use dogs to fight their battles…