UPDATE: The Clark County Coroner’s Office has identified the home invasion suspect who was shot and killed Wednesday.
He was identified as Travon Powell, 27. His cause of death was multiple gunshot wounds.
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Las Vegas police say that a homeowner’s son shot two men, killing one of them, after they allegedly attempted to break into their home.
According to Homicide Lt. Jason Johansson, police were called to a home in the 3300 block of Iberia Street near West Desert Inn Road and South Rainbow Boulevard at around 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 20, after a report of a shooting.
The 70-year-old man who called 911 told police two people tried to break into his house through the back door and his son, a 50-year-old man, had shot them.
When officers arrived, both the homeowner and his son exited the house. They told police that they had been inside their home when two men wearing masks, gloves, and dark clothing attempted to break into the home.
The son grabbed his gun and shot at them as they tried to enter.
The homeowner and his son said that one of the men appeared to be dead in the backyard and the other man had jumped over a wall in the backyard and left in “what appeared to be” a grey sedan.
Medical personnel pronounced the man in the backyard dead on the scene. Johansson said the man appeared to be in his 20s.
Approximately 10 minutes later, police began receiving calls about a vehicle driving at a “reckless” speed in a parking lot in the area of Tropicana Avenue and Jones Boulevard. Shortly after, that vehicle, a grey sedan, was involved in an accident with two other vehicles in the area of Tropicana Avenue and Decatur Boulevard.
The driver of the sedan was wearing dark clothing and had a gunshot wound in his leg.
Police believed the driver of the vehicle was involved in the attempted break-in. He was taken to a local hospital where he is in police custody.
Police said the shooting appeared to be in self-defense and Johansson said “doesn’t anticipate any charges” against the son.
On Thursday, 8 News Now went to the neighborhood to try and talk with the father and son but were told to go away.
“You know what happened,” they said. “We are okay. Go away.”
Neighbor Kyle Stinnet heard there had been reports of attempted break-ins in the area recently.
“I just noticed a lot of people running around, jumping off block walls, being in places they shouldn’t be,” Stinnet said.
He agreed with the drastic decision his neighbor had to make.
“The same way the guy protected his home, I’ll continue to protect it that way,” Stinnet said. “Having to shoot somebody because they are coming into your house wrongfully, that’s something that doesn’t sit well with anybody. You don’t ever want to be put in that position.”
Johansson said police are reviewing other break-ins in the area to see if the suspects are connected. He said at least one other event happened earlier in the day on Wednesday.
In Nevada, there is a ‘stand your ground’ law, meaning you are allowed to use deadly force if you are not the original aggressor, you are legally entitled to be where you are, and you are not involved in criminal activity when there was deadly force used.
Anyone with any information is encouraged to contact the LVMPD Homicide Section by phone at 702-828-3521 or by email at homicide@lvmpd.com. To remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 702-385-5555 or on their website.
This is an ongoing investigation.
