Man in failed animal hospital armed robbery ID’d after leaving wallet at scene

By Ricardo Torres-Cortez

Friday, Dec. 23, 2016 | 4:20 p.m.

Hours after his failed attempt at an animal-hospital robbery, Ronald Hassan Clark walked into his apartment and told a roommate, “Oh no! Oh no! I feel like I’m going to jail,” according to his arrest report

“I was trying to rob the Flamingo Animal Hospital, and some white dude pulled out a pistol, tried to be a hero and tried to stop me,” Clark told the roommate, according to the report.

But the roommate’s statement wasn’t what initially linked Clark to the crime. He dropped his wallet at the animal hospital, 5445 W. Flamingo Road, police said.

When detectives spoke with Clark during his arrest — after a two-hour barricade inside his apartment — he told them he didn’t do it and was out buying heroin. Still, he couldn’t explain how his wallet ended up at the scene, police said.

He also said the robber may have been a friend he’d seen running out of the hospital. But “when asked if (he) had any concern for the well-being of the victim, Clark began to cry and stated he did,” according to the report.

That victim is Lance Spiotto, a 22-year Metro robbery unit veteran, who had taken his pet to the hospital and waiting at the reception area. Clark pulled out his gun as he exited carrying the cash register, prompting Spiotto to pull out his gun and give Clark commands to drop his. Clark tried to slap the officer’s gun away and a fight ensued.

Two rounds went off during the altercation in which the Spiotto was pinned to the floor by the 6-foot-3 suspect, police said.

Before being tripped by Spiotto and fleeing, Clark had an apparent clear aim of the officer, but didn’t shoot.

However, he took Spiotto’s gun when fleeing. The weapon was later found abandoned.

Spiotto suffered a laceration to the back of the head and several minor injuries to his face and arms, police said. Investigators ordered a blood draw when they smelled alcohol in the detective’s breath.

Metro launched an internal probe into whether the officer had consumed alcohol and if he was intoxicated during the incident, Clark County Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said Thursday. Pending results, it could lead to disciplinary action, he said.

Police officers are asked to use their judgement when dealing with armed suspects while they’re off-duty, McMahill said. He said officers are asked not to carry weapons when they’d consumed alcoholic beverages.

“I think he made a very courageous decision to become involved in this active armed robbery with a violent suspect.”

Clark, who has a lengthy criminal record in Virginia and Nevada dating back to 1995, was booked without bail at the Clark County Detention Center on numerous, robbery, burglary and weapon-related charges.