Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Metro: Kidnapper ‘dictated actions’ of officers in fatal shooting

kidnapping

metro police

An armed kidnapping suspect is shown in this screen grab from video with his ex-girlfriend.

Updated Thursday, Oct. 14, 2021 | 6:19 p.m.

Click to enlarge photo

Mario Lawrence Martinez

Metro Police today identified the officer and suspect involved in a fatal shooting in the northeastern valley earlier this week.

Officer Ramon Hiestand, 35, was involved in a shooting Tuesday in the 5800 block of East Charleston Boulevard, near Sloan Lane, Assistant Sheriff Andrew Walsh said at a media briefing. The man killed was Mario Lawrence Martinez, 43, of Las Vegas, who Walsh said kidnapped his ex-girlfriend and held her at gunpoint.

The woman reported minor injuries and no officers were injured, Walsh said. If Martinez had survived, he would have been charged with kidnapping with a deadly weapon, attempted murder, five counts of attempted murder on a police officer, home invasion, burglary with a firearm and shooting into an occupied structure.

“I think it’s really a nightmare scenario of a mobile hostage situation,” Walsh said. “The loss of life in any situation is sad and tragic for the family members of that person involved. But in this situation, the suspect dictated the actions of the officers and there was little left for us to do.”

Officers were initially dispatched to an apartment in the 5600 block of East Lake Mead Boulevard at 9:33 a.m. on an assault and battery call. The kidnapping victim’s current boyfriend had told arriving officers that her ex-boyfriend, Martinez, had been harassing them and fired shots before kicking in the front door of the apartment to forcibly remove the woman, Walsh said.

Martinez threatened her with a 9 mm handgun and tried to escape in her car, but ultimately fled with her on foot because her car’s battery was dead, Walsh said. Officers determined the two were likely headed to Martinez’s residence, located near the plaza on Charleston.

Patrol officers located Martinez and the victim near the plaza at about 10:50 a.m. and asked him to surrender. Martinez did not comply and walked with the victim at gunpoint to the plaza’s parking lot, Walsh said.

Martinez unsuccessfully attempted to steal a car sitting in a drive-thru in the plaza and also tried to steal two other vehicles in the plaza parking lot, Walsh said. He then forced the victim to walk into a grocery store in the plaza while still holding her at gunpoint and “waving the gun in the air,” Walsh said.

The two made their way through the grocery store and exited through the back and into an alley, Walsh said. Officers were able to follow Martinez and get in close proximity to him.

In the alley, Martinez tried to steal an unoccupied box truck and shot out its window, but was unable to start the vehicle, Walsh said. He then forced the victim to walk westbound with him toward Sloan.

While he and the victim were in the alley, officers set up a containment around the shopping center and a team of officers — which included Hiestand — made contact with Martinez, Walsh said. The two made their way to the sidewalk on the east side of Sloan, when he pointed his gun at officers and the woman was able to momentarily break free.

Hiestand fired his weapon after the woman broke free and shot Martinez, prompting him to fall to the ground. Martinez fired more shots at officers while on the ground and Hiestand returned fire until Martinez stopped shooting, Walsh said.

Hiestand was armed with a Colt LE carbine rifle, Walsh said. He fired eight rounds and Martinez had fired five.

Officers rendered aid to Martinez but medical personnel declared him dead at the scene, Walsh said. Martinez’s death was ruled a homicide by gunshot wound to the chest, according to the Clark County Coroner’s Office.

Walsh said he was unsure if Martinez had a past history of domestic violence with the victim.

The incident marks the eighth officer-involved shooting this year and the fifth fatal police shooting. That compares to 16 officer-involved shootings through this date in 2020, eight of which were deadly.