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March 19, 2024

Police: Employee booked on murder count after shooting at smoke shop

Smoke Shop Shooting

Ricardo Torres-Cortez

Metro Police Lt. Dan McGrath addresses the media Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2016, regarding a shooting at a smoke shop that killed a 13-year-old boy on Friday. To his right are Metro Capt. Roxanne McDaris and Pastor Troy Martinez.

Updated Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2016 | 2:34 p.m.

Click to enlarge photo

Raad Sunna

A smoke shop employee who fatally shot an unarmed 13-year-old boy Friday during a theft was never in any danger and has been booked on a count of murder, according to Metro Police.

Raad Sunna, 24, was arrested Monday night, not long after police reviewed surveillance video from the store, Lt. Dan McGrath said during a news briefing this morning.

Police initially described the incident as an attempted robbery. But after reviewing the surveillance tapes, police determined Sunna’s life was not in danger before he fired eight or nine rounds, McGrath said.

“There was not one person who saw the video who believed that he was in imminent jeopardy, being threatened (or) in personal danger at that point,” McGrath said.

Sunna, who was hysterical and crying, summoned police about 5:15 p.m. to Desert Breeze Plaza in the 8600 block of West Flamingo Road, near Durango Road, McGrath said.

Fabriccio Patti and two other teens, ages 14 and 15, rushed into the store wearing masks, McGrath said. The trio, identified by school and police officials as eighth-graders at Lawrence Junior High School, had formulated a plan to steal items from the store, but they were not armed, McGrath said.

Sunna, who was at the cash register toward the back of the store, told detectives the teens were approaching him when he opened fired, but the videos showed the boys stopped to grab items, McGrath said.

That’s when Sunna pulled a gun and fired, striking Patti “more than a few times,” McGrath said. Patti died at University Medical Center, police said.

“They never made it up close to him at all, not even close,” McGrath said.

The two other teens fled the smoke shop and were taken into custody at a nearby fast-food restaurant, police said. They were initially booked on robbery-related counts, which are expected to be reduced to theft counts, McGrath said.

“This shouldn’t have ever happened. The lives of Fabriccio Patti and Raad Sunna were drastically changed,” McGrath said. “If you’re going to pull a gun and point it and you pull that trigger, every time you pull that trigger, you’re responsible for what happens, and you’re going to have to be able to explain your actions.”

Metro Capt. Roxanne McDaris cautioned adults to be aware of what their children are up to.

“We need to protect our children,” McDaris said, her eyes watering and her voice cracking. “We need to help them make the right decision. We, as a community, as a police department and as parents, need to work together to make that happen.”

A counseling team was at the school Monday and was on standby if students needed to talk to somebody, a Clark County School District spokesman said.

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