LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Eight inmates face charges in connection with a prison riot last December in what the Nevada Department of Corrections (NDOC) initially called a disturbance.
Five months later, the 8 News Investigators exposed what happened and uncovered that a riot had in fact taken place. The 8 News Now Investigators learned inmates unlocked their own cells from the inside, refused orders, covered surveillance cameras, flooded the area with water and took control of an entire prison unit.
Inmates Jared Ayers, Javis Blake, Alexius Davis, Zackaria Luz, Dayveontay McClain, Dominic Porter, Nicholas Smith and Michael Wesley all face a misdemeanor charge of rioting, according to a criminal complaint filed in Las Vegas Justice Court on Nov. 10.
The riot occurred at the medium-security Southern Desert Correctional Center on Dec. 8, 2021.
Jared Ayers, 26, was serving time for possessing a firearm as a felon and appears to be out of custody, according to NDOC records. The criminal complaint states that he “covered the lens of a SDCC surveillance camera recording activity in unit 5, and failed to follow direct order(s) from SDCC staff to return to his cell in Unit 5.”
Javis Blake, 27, is serving time for multiple crimes including attempted sexual assault and robbery, according to NDOC records. The criminal complaint states that he “repeatedly shook a security gate in order to try to gain access to a secure area… and failed to follow direct order(s) from SDCC staff to return to his cell in Unit 5.”
Alexius Davis, 28, was serving time for robbery and appeared to be out of custody as of Monday, according to NDOC records. The criminal complaint states that he “attempted to cover the lens of a SDCC surveillance camera recording activity in unit 5, and failed to follow direct order(s) from SDCC staff to return to his cell in unit 5.”
Zackaria Luz, 42, was serving time for drug charges and is also no longer in custody, according to NDOC records. The criminal complaint states that he “emptied a unit trashcan and filled that trashcan with water for the purpose of using the water to resist the actions of correctional staff in the unit and further the disturbance, and failed to follow direct order(s) from SDCC staff to return to his cell in Unit 5.”
Dayveontay McClain, 21, is serving time for robbery. The criminal complaint states that he threw a padlock and/or biscuit at multiple officers and struck one correctional officer. McClain is also accused of throwing a broom near multiple officers while the broom was on fire. McClain faces felony charges of assault on an officer by a prisoner and third-degree arson.
Dominic Porter, 31, is serving time for attempted murder. The criminal complaint states that he “covered the lens of a SDCC surveillance camera recording activity in Unit 5, repeatedly pulled and pushed on a security gate in order to try to gain access to a secure area (a unit control center and an area where staff were staging to respond to the disorder in Unit 5 at SDCC), and failed to follow direct order(s) from SDCC staff to return to his cell in Unit 5.”
Michael Wesley, 30, was serving time for robbery and is was no longer in custody as of Monday, according to NDOC records. The criminal complaint states that “broke out of his prison cell and let other inmates out of their cells by manipulating or ‘jimmying’ other cell locks, and failed to follow direct order(s) from SDCC staff to return to his cell in Unit 5.”
Ayers, Davis and Porter face a gross misdemeanor charge of tampering with an electronic device in connection with the tampering of at least one surveillance camera.
Two months after the 8 News Now Investigators exposed the riot, the prison warden resigned.
Southern Desert Correctional Center is the same prison where convicted murderer Porfirio Duarte-Herrera escaped in September. He was later taken into custody by officers with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
Shortly after the escape, Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak announced NDOC Director Charles Daniels was stepping down at his request. Daniels later held a press conference insisting that he was treated unfairly by Sisolak and his administration.
When asked about the riot in a sit-down interview with the 8 News Now Investigators, Daniels continued to insist that a riot did not take place.
Four corrections officers are also facing charges in connection with the riot.
