Police hope to question man in homicide probe

Metro Police are looking for a man who was last seen fighting an apartment fire in which his two female roommates were found dead from gunshot wounds.

Police also have reclassified the Aug. 27 incident at 3940 Algonquin Drive from a homicide-suicide to a double homicide.

Metro Homicide Lt. Wayne Petersen said that police are seeking Kenneth Johnson Jr., 25, for questioning only, and that no charges have been filed.

"We have not totally ruled out homicide-suicide, but at this point we are treating it as a double homicide," Petersen said.

Found dead in the apartment were Joyce Collins and Elizabeth Alexander, both 44 and both Las Vegas residents. Alexander died from a gunshot wound. Collins was stabbed and shot, Petersen said.

Autopsies found that both women were dead before the start of the fire. Also, Clark County Fire Department investigators found that a fuel was used to ignite the flames, indicating the strong possibility of a third party being involved.

Petersen said it is "impossible to tell" if the scene was staged to attempt to fool police into thinking that the incident was a homicide-suicide.

What police do know is that Johnson was living in the apartment for two to three months and that he has not been seen locally since the fire. He was last seen by Clark County firefighters attempting to put out the blaze.

Johnson left the area before police could question him and may have gone to Southern California, Petersen said.

Anyone with information is asked to call Secret Witness at 385-5555 or Metro homicide at 229-3521.

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