Nevada Trooper Injured on I-15 Near Strip, Carjacking Suspect Fatally Shot

Posted on: July 28, 2021, 05:43h. 

Last updated on: July 28, 2021, 02:06h.

Ed Silverstein @casinoorgedsilv Read More
Expertise: Legal, Tribal Gaming.

A Nevada Highway Patrol trooper was in critical but stable condition early Wednesday. The trooper was struck by a car driven by an apparent carjacker on Interstate 15.

The trooper was trying to set up spikes to demobilize the carjacker’s vehicle when the impact occurred
Police block traffic from getting onto I-15 in Las Vegas. The highway was the site of a female driver striking a Nevada trooper Tuesday with a car, critically injuring him. (Image: Las Vegas Review-Journal)

The incident took place near the Las Vegas Strip at about 12:30 pm Tuesday. The female driver was later shot dead by police on the highway.

After the driver appeared to be reaching for the trooper’s firearm, she was shot multiple times by other troopers, based on initial reports. Police believe she also was armed with a knife. Troopers fired between 20 and 25 shots at the suspect, KLAS, a local TV station, said, based on information from an eyewitness.

Neither the injured trooper nor the deceased suspect was immediately identified.

It appears the female carjacker initially was pursued by Department of Parole and Probation officers stemming from an earlier incident, KLAS reported. The police chase lasted about 20 minutes.

Tropper Struck During Carjacking

The trooper was standing outside of his police cruiser in the southbound lanes of the highway when he was injured by the car. The car may have been in a spin at the time.

The trooper had been setting up spikes to demobilize the carjacker’s vehicle when the impact occurred.

The force from the accident pushed the trooper through the car’s windshield, KLAS said. A description of his injuries was not immediately available.

A Metro police helicopter landed on the highway and transported the trooper to nearby University Medical Center, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported, based on information from an unnamed police source.

Eyewitness Account

Witness Milton Burns told KLAS he saw the trooper place spikes on the highway, and then saw the car strike the trooper.

Ah man, it was just crazy!” Burns told KLAS. “… That was the craziest part of it all, just watching half of a body out of a windshield, just being like a ragdoll, just going back and forth.”

At one point, Interstate 15 was completely closed between Flamingo Road and Charleston Boulevard and was blocked in other locations, too. Northbound lanes reopened first. Then, southbound lanes reopened.

The incident apparently led to congested local roads in the area around the Strip, such as Sahara Avenue. Several casinos are located nearby.

Recent Violence Against Police Officers

Earlier this month, a Las Vegas Metro police officer was hospitalized with a gunshot wound.

The shooting occurred over July 4 weekend. Police were on Al Davis Way near Allegiant Stadium to investigate a disturbance. The off-Strip stadium is just west of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino.

During the incident, police took a man into custody when he allegedly grabbed an officer’s gun during a struggle and fired a shot that struck the officer. He was hospitalized for non-life-threatening injuries.

Lyndon Troung, 28, was charged with battery with the use of a deadly weapon on a first responder, battery resulting in substantial bodily harm, and resisting a public officer with a firearm, according to the Review-Journal.