Deadly Shooting at University of Nevada Las Vegas Mistakenly Handled by Police

By RIO YAMAT and KEN RITTER – Associated Press

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Police Mistake Gunman for Bystander During Deadly Shooting at University of Nevada Las Vegas

Police officers responding to a deadly shooting at the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) business school mistakenly ordered the gunman, identified as 67-year-old Anthony Polito, to leave the building while frantically searching for the suspect and victims, according to body camera footage and police reports. The incident occurred on December 6, resulting in the deaths of three professors and injuries to another.

With guns drawn, two officers from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department climbed the stairs to a second-floor walkway overlooking the shooting scene. The officers were unaware that the gunman was already inside the building. The video footage, released on Wednesday, provides a glimpse of Polito inside the business school after he had opened fire on multiple floors of the five-story building.

At the time of the shooting, students and staff were gathered in a large courtyard just outside the business school, enjoying lunch and engaging in recreational activities. Polito, dressed in a long black trench coat over a white shirt, moved calmly through the first floor of the building while officers were storming the premises. He did not display any visible weapons.

The officers, unaware of the shooter’s identity, yelled at Polito to leave the building, pointing him towards an exit. Clark County Sheriff’s Deputy Andrew Walsh confirmed that the officers had no description of the shooter and believed that other law enforcement personnel were present on the first floor.

About a minute later, Polito exited the building and drew his gun, resulting in a shootout with university police officers. The exchange of fire ended with Polito being killed, and no one outside the building was injured.

Although the body camera footage released on Wednesday did not capture the shooting, a short video previously released by Sheriff Kevin McMahill showed Polito descending a flight of stairs outside the business school. In that video, a university police officer approached Polito from behind, but when Polito turned around with his gun, the officer sought cover behind a patrol car. McMahill stated that university officials were initially unaware that they had encountered the shooter.

Authorities have not disclosed a motive for the shooting, but it was revealed that Polito had been experiencing financial difficulties and had been denied teaching positions at UNLV and other Nevada schools. Polito had previously held a permanent teaching position at East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina, for more than 15 years before leaving in 2017.

The victims of the shooting were identified as Naoko Takemaru, 69, an associate professor of Japanese studies and an author; Cha Jan “Jerry” Chang, 64, an associate professor in the business school’s Department of Management, Entrepreneurship, and Technology; and Patricia Navarro Velez, 39, an accounting professor specializing in research on cybersecurity disclosures and data analytics. The injured victim, a 38-year-old visiting professor, has not been named.

Police have announced that additional body camera footage related to the incident will be released in the coming weeks.