Search for Las Vegas investigative reporter’s killer leads to home of senior county official

The home of a senior Clark County official who was investigated by Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Jeff German was raided by police on Wednesday as part of the investigation into the journalist’s fatal murder .

Las Vegas Metro Police served the warrant at the home of Clark County Administrator Robert Telles, who lost a primary election in June after German’s stories revealed allegations of bullying, favoritism and of an inappropriate relationship between Telles and a subordinate. Telles had publicly accused German of being a “bully” and of waging a “smear” campaign against him.

Telles has not been charged with a crime and could not be reached for comment.

The search came a day after police announced they had linked a red or brown 2007-2014 GMC Yukon Denali to the fatal stabbing of German, 69, outside his home in northwest Las Vegas . German was found Saturday morning, but investigators said they believe the murder took place Friday morning and security footage linked the SUV to a suspected assailant.

An SUV matching that description was towed from Telles driveway on Wednesday morning as detectives searched the home. Las Vegas police released two images on Tuesday that they believe were potential leads in the murder. One was an image of an unidentified suspect whose appearance was disguised by a large straw hat, gloves and an orange long-sleeved shirt. The man was spotted surveying the area. The second was Denali, which had chrome handles and a sunroof.

Las Vegas Metro Police, following the opening of the search warrant, admitted that they were “currently serving search warrants” in connection with German’s murder. The ministry would not provide specific addresses. It was unclear if Telles was the only target of the warrants.

In a series of somewhat confusing statements, the Las Vegas Metro repeatedly called it an “isolated incident” when pressed about the danger to the public. But they also said: “It appears the suspect potentially surrounded the area for further crimes before the homicide occurred.”

According to Las Vegas Review-Journal, German was working on a new story on Telles the week he was stabbed to death.

Telles, who remains in the post until December, publicly berated German, accusing him in one tweet of writing a “bit of a lie” and in another of being a “bully”.

Editor Glenn Cook said German had not raised any concerns about his safety with the newspaper’s management team.

“We hope they find this person very quickly so that we can get answers to all the questions that we have as colleagues and friends, in relation to the work that we all do,” he said. at the Times this weekend.

German was previously a longtime columnist and reporter for the Las Vegas Sun, where he covered courts, politics, labor, government and organized crime, according to his biography. He joined the Review-Journal in 2010, where his investigative work covered articles on organized crime, political corruption and government failures.

Cook said German’s “bread and butter” “heralds big stories”, with many of his investigations leading to significant reform.