Thanks to Gaughan donation, planned Metro K-9 facility a go

Almost six decades after he was killed in the line of duty, a Metro Police officer is set to receive an honor his daughter says would make him proud.

A new police K-9 training and operations center is being built next to the South Point, thanks to a donation from the casino’s owner, Michael Gaughan.

The center will be named for former Metro Officer William Fortye, who was shot and killed during a struggle after a traffic stop Oct. 28, 1966, in Las Vegas.

According to an account on the Metro website, Fortye’s police dog, Burgie, tried to defend him by attacking the assailant.

On Monday, Fortye’s daughter, Tracy Myers, was among a few dozen people on hand for a ceremonial groundbreaking at the site of the planned center, just south of the casino.

“It’s a very proud moment for me,” Myers said. “He loved his job and he loved Burgie. This is going to be a great way to remember him and what he stood for.”

The idea to name the facility after the fallen officer, along with the money and land to build it, came from Gaughan, who was a friend of Fortye.

In the early 1960s, Gaughan’s father, Las Vegas casino owner Jackie Gaughan, purchased the El Cortez casino in downtown Las Vegas.

As a young man, Michael Gaughan became friends with Fortye and, as Myers tells it, the pair dined together just hours before the officer’s death.

“My father worked the graveyard shift, and he and Michael were friends and would often have lunch at around 2 a.m. together,” said Myers, a lifelong Las Vegas resident who was 6 when her father was killed. “I’m in awe of all this. It’s a wonderful legacy for my father.”

Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo, who was on hand for the ceremony, said Gaughan, an advocate for law enforcement agencies in Southern Nevada, approached him in 2019 to see if he could support the department in any way.

Lombardo said he mentioned the need for a new K-9 center, but the coronavirus pandemic hit soon after, putting the possible project on hold.

“To be honest, once the pandemic happened, I thought this was going to go by the wayside,” Lombardo said. “Mr. Gaughan called me up one day and said with the reopening of casinos and revenues coming back, he could see it happening.”

During a meeting between the two at a South Point coffee shop, Lombardo said, they jotted down plans for the center on a menu.

“He really stepped up for us,” Lombardo said. “I think it’s very important for people to realize the influence that the Gaughan family has had on LVMPD over the years. The benevolence and charity shown over the years has been tremendous.”

Lt. Jeff Clark, who heads Metro’s K-9 section, said the facility would be state-of-the-art. 

The facility is planned for 11,400 square feet and includes a 1,961-square-foot kennel with 24 stalls. There will also be a canine obstacle gross, grass area and relief area.

Additionally, the facility will house five administrative offices, locker rooms for K-9 officers and a training room. Construction should take six months.

The unit, which handles close to 30 police dogs, is now housed in Metro’s oldest building, Clark said.

Gillett Construction of Henderson will be the general contractor for the project.

According to Clark County records, the center will sit on close to 2 acres of land and is expected to cost $3 million.

The center still needs some final approvals from the county to move forward.