Chairman Stephen Cloobeck, right, questions Deputy Chief of Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Investigative Services Division James LaRochelle, left, during a state of Nevada Athletic Commission meeting held to discuss the Nevada Attorney Generals investigation findings regarding the death of UNLV student Nathan Valencia Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2022. Valencia, 20, died at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center on Nov. 23, 2021, days after participating in a charity boxing match sponsored by a UNLV fraternity.
Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2022 | 2 a.m.
Metro Police engaged in missteps as it investigated the death of a UNLV student who died late last year after participating in an off-campus charity boxing event, according to a newly released report by the Nevada attorney general’s office.
The findings of the report by Attorney General Aaron Ford’s office were presented Tuesday to board members of the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) in an hourslong meeting that at times featured heated questioning as chairman Stephen J. Cloobeck pressed into officials with Metro and the Clark County district attorney’s office, among others.
Metro’s probe, the report states, was “entirely limited to the single question of whether the Sahara Event Center possessed a valid Clark County Business License. After concluding that it did, Metro conducted no additional inquiries into the matter,” according to the report.
Nathan Valencia, 20, collapsed in the ring at a Fight Night event Nov. 19, 2021, promoted by UNLV’s Kappa Sigma fraternity at the off-campus Sahara Event Center, 800 E. Karen Ave.
Further, Metro’s statements that no crime had been committed “were conclusory and premature, and compromised any possible future prosecutions,” according to the attorney general’s report. Metro on Dec. 13 stated circumstances surrounding Valencia’s death were not criminal, which subsequently “foreclosed the possibility of any future prosecution — regardless of any additional investigative findings,” the report states.
However, investigators found no direct evidence any criminal violation occurred, outside of an NSAC statute, that contributed to Valencia’s death, the report found.
“Metro did not ask the right questions,” Cloobeck said, blasting Metro and Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo after the meeting and calling for further investigation into the death. “(They) asked a very binary, specific question. … let’s see what Metro does. They said they’d like to be helpful and participatory, and like fellow Nevadans. Let’s see if they do that. I know the DA will do the right job after they do their job, Metro.”
Cloobeck revealed at the meeting he personally asked Lombardo last November and that the sheriff assured him that Valencia’s death would be investigated. Lombardo is now the Republican Party’s nominee for Nevada governor.
“I just saw so many failures and so many commitments from people that I thought were community leaders, and thought leaders wanted to do the right thing,” Cloobeck said.
In a response provided to the Sun, Metro spokesman Larry Hadfield said Metro disputed the findings in the attorney general’s report.
“After the initial event, LVMPD communicated in a timely manner with UNLV Police, the Clark County district attorney’s office, the attorney general’s office and the Nevada State Athletic Commission,” Hadfield said in a statement. “From LVMPD’s preliminary investigation, and after discussion with the district attorney’s office, it was determined there was no criminal intent.
“If the attorney general has probable cause to believe the athletic commission’s regulatory statutes were violated, or any criminal violations occurred, they have investigative and prosecutorial authority to pursue the matter,” the statement said.
Hadfield went on to say, “The hearing this morning at the Nevada State Athletic Commission was unprofessional and unproductive. LVMPD is willing to assist the attorney general’s office if they want to move forward with any criminal prosecution.”
Speaking at the meeting Tuesday, Metro deputy chief James LaRochelle, defended the department’s decision not to investigate further, despite Cloobeck’s claim that Lombardo told him the incident would warrant deeper digging..
Sparring with Cloobeck and at times calling the report inaccurate and slanted, LaRochelle said Metro only had the authority to investigate the venue for licensing violations because there was no evidence of criminal intent surrounding Valencia’s death.
“We did not do a murder investigation because we did not have criminal charges,” LaRochelle said. “LVMPD has never investigated a boxer’s death, though it has occurred many times in this jurisdiction. … (the report) is saying no crime occurred, but you’re trying to lay this at the feet of Metro.”
Since-released 911 call audio from the event, and a civil lawsuit filed by Valencia’s parents — in which UNLV, the Kappa Sigma national chapter, the amateur referee who called the fight and the Sahara Events Center were named defendants — depicts a frantic scene after Valencia lost consciousness.
In social media posts by the fraternity, Valencia was slated to fight in the main event with fellow UNLV student Emmanuel Aleman.
The lawsuit alleges the fraternity and UNLV failed to provide proper training to participants, provided no medical personnel on-site during the event and that the fill-in referee — listed in the lawsuit as Christopher Eisenhauer — was unqualified and was “intoxicated and highly impaired” during the event.
Further, the attorney general report states that the fraternity-sponsored event featured several fighters who were not enrolled at UNLV when the fight took place, meaning the NSAC ultimately had the authority to impose sanctions and regulate the fight, had the body been made aware of it.The Fight Night event, however, did not comply with any of those additional steps required for amateur boxing events, according to the report.
“This report, it’s a cluster beyond belief, from one end to the other,”Commissioner Anthony Marnell said. “Between organization, promotion, safety, inspection, drugs, drinking alcohol in the ring? I mean, really, a referee drinking in the ring? What are we doing?
“This is an underground fight, for all intents and purposes, where they were charging at the door, taking money, completely unregulated and running wild.”
Citing the pending litigation in the civil case, attorneys for UNLV’s Kappa Sigma chapter, as well as the Sahara Events Center — who were in attendance at Tuesday’s meeting — declined to comment. Benjamin Cloward, who’s representing the Valencia family in the civil lawsuit, could not be reached for comment. Geordan Logan, an attorney representing Aleman, said his client was heartbroken by Valencia’s death and the two had no ill will toward each other, and added that Aleman would participate in any investigative action moving forward.
Valencia was transported to the nearby Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center where he died three days after the fight.
Metro on several occasions said the circumstances surrounding Valencia’s death were not criminal and no charges would be filed. The Clark County coroner’s office ruled Valencia’s death a homicide, with the cause of death being blunt force head trauma. The lawsuit filed by Valencia’s parents,Michael and Cynthia Valencia, stated Nathan suffered a subural hematoma — pooling blood on the brain — because of the fight.
In December, the commission voted unanimously to adopt an emergency regulation that would govern combat sport competitions hosted by fraternities and other university-affiliated entities as a direct response to Valencia’s death. The order, called “Nathan’s Law” was signed by Gov. Steve Sisolak later that day, and the Nevada Legislative Commission approved the regulation in February. The 12-member Legislative Commission takes actions on behalf of the legislative branch of government when the full Legislature is not in session.
The attorney general’s report recommended further legislative action that would allow governing bodies like the Intercollegiate Boxing Association, USA Boxing, the NCAA or an equivalent organization, the ability to provide collegiate boxing oversight if the NSAC cannot.
Ford’s office also recommended increased communication between NSAC and local law enforcement in the event a future incident occurs. Though the NSAC has jurisdiction in most amateur fights throughout the state, it lacks authority to prosecute criminal infractions and can work better with law enforcement agencies if future violations occur, according to the report.
