Wednesday, March 23, 2022 | 4:06 p.m.
Dontay Gray
A man is facing attempted murder and hate crime counts after attempting to lure a man he believed was gay to an alley in downtown Las Vegas before stabbing him Saturday, according to a Metro Police arrest report.
Dontay Gray, 32, of Las Vegas remains at the Clark County Detention Center on counts of attempted murder, battery with use of a deadly weapon, robbery and two counts of hate crimes, according to jail logs. He made his initial appearance Tuesday in Las Vegas Justice Court and was denied bail.
Gray admitted to purchasing a knife from a smoke shop an hour before the attack and was planning on killing two people he encountered in the 1000 block of Fremont Street, according to the arrest report.
Metro officers were dispatched about 8 p.m. to Fremont and 11th Street and found a man stabbed in the stomach, police said. He was transported to University Medical Center.
Two men were leaving a convenience store in the area when they noticed Gray staring in their direction in a manner that made them feel “incredibly creeped out,” the arrest report said.
One of the men continued walking while the other returned to the store momentarily to purchase additional items he forgot, the report said.
After leaving the store a second time, the victim — whose name was redacted in the report — noticed Gray following him as he was walking home, police said.
The man asked Gray, “Can I help you?” to which Gray responded by removing his hands from his hoodie and stabbing the man before walking away, police said.
Detectives checked nearby surveillance cameras and tracked Gray to the 1300 block of Fremont Street, where he was taken into custody, the arrest report said.
Gray said he was trying to lure the man into an alley to stab him because he knew there were cameras at the intersection, according to the report.
Gray told detectives he’s “incredibly homophobic” and used several gay slurs during questioning, the report said. He said if he was freed, “he would go kill other gay people,” according to the arrest report.
Gray was appointed a public defender, according to court records. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for April 5.
