Las Vegas Strip reopens after gunman surrenders in fatal shooting standoff
By Sally Ho
LAS VEGAS — A lone gunman opened fire on a double decker bus traveling the Las Vegas Strip, killing one person and wounding another before barricading himself in a standoff that lasted hours before he finally surrendered, authorities said.
The standoff began about 11 a.m. with a shooting that killed one person and injured another. It happened on a double-decker bus stopped on Las Vegas Boulevard near the Cosmopolitan hotel-casino.
“He was on the bus. He was shooting people on the bus. He was just contained to that location. He never exited the bus,” Clark County Assistant Sheriff Tom Roberts said.
Two people were taken to the hospital after the shooting, University Medical Center spokeswoman Danita Cohen said. One died, and the other was in fair condition.
For hours, crisis negotiators, robots and armored vehicles surrounded the bus with authorities uncertain whether there were any more victims inside. Meanwhile, officers swept into the casinos to warn tourists to remain until further notice, leaving normally bustling pedestrian areas and a road notorious for busy traffic completely empty. The Strip was shut down for blocks in both directions.
Some in the Cosmopolitan — hotel guests out over their balconies, party people on the pool deck — saw the tense situation unfold below.
Former NBA player Scot Pollard, who is staying at the Cosmopolitan, said by phone that he was at a bar at the hotel-casino around 11 a.m. when he saw several people, including staff, running through the area toward the casino and repeatedly screaming “get out of the way.” After he was told that the area would be closed, he went back to his room, which oversees the Strip.
“We can hear them negotiating. We can hear them saying
things like ‘No one else needs to get hurt,’ ‘Come out with your hands up. We are not going anywhere. We are not leaving,’ ” he said.
Visitors also stayed inside some of the other prominent casino properties affected, including the Bellagio, Paris, Planet Hollywood and Bally’s, which in addition to hotels and casinos also have restaurants, shops and attractions.
Las Vegas police Officer Larry Hadfield said just before 3:30 p.m. that the man, who had a handgun, surrendered without incident. Police did not open fire and said they believe the man is the only suspect. Terrorism or any connection to an earlier robbery nearby that shut down a part of the Bellagio was ruled out. No other information about the man was released.
The bus is operated by the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada.