Las Vegas Reporter’s Murder Suspect Detained without Bail

On Thursday, a court in Las Vegas denied bail to Clark County’s public administrator following his arrest for the death of an investigative reporter who had authored news pieces exposing the official’s crimes.

According to online court documents, Clark County Public Administrator Robert Telles is charged with one count of murder with the use of a deadly weapon. He was arrested on Wednesday, five days after Jeff German, a writer for the Las Vegas Review-Journal, was stabbed to death outside his house.

“Telles was very upset about German’s reporting about his role as public administrator,” Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Captain Dori Koren said at a press conference.

Judge Elana Lee Graham ordered Telles jailed without bail after a brief appearance in Las Vegas Justice Court on Thursday afternoon, according to the Review-Journal.

During the hearing, prosecutors stated that German had been stabbed seven times, and the judge stated that the suspect’s DNA was discovered under German’s fingernails and on his hands, which also bore defensive wounds.

Telles, who was dressed in dark blue prison clothes during the hearing, will be back in court on Tuesday. In court filings, no attorney was mentioned for him.

German, 69, was well-known in Las Vegas for his decades-long coverage of political corruption and organized crime in the state’s largest city. He spent months investigating allegations that Telles had an inappropriate connection with a subordinate and was in charge of an abusive workplace.

Telles has disputed the allegations, claiming that they were made by disgruntled “old-timers.”

Telles lost his re-election bid shortly after German’s study was released, losing the Democratic primary in June. He was set to depart the presidency in January.

“It is troublesome because it is journalist and we expect journalism to be open and transparent and a watchdog for government,” Sheriff Joe Lombardo said during the news conference.

Telles refused to speak to reporters outside his home on Wednesday after a police interrogation and search. He appeared to be dressed in a hazmat suit and sandals.

He was eventually apprehended and transported out of the residence on a stretcher with non-life threatening self-inflicted wounds, according to Koren.

According to the sheriff, the Review-Journal provided authorities with information regarding German’s reporting that aided the investigation.

The chief editor of the newspaper, Glenn Cook, said German’s colleagues were crushed by his death.

Cook said in a statement, “He was the gold standard of the news business,” “It’s hard to imagine what Las Vegas would be like today without his many years of shining a bright light on dark places.”

After the charges against Telles surfaced, Clark County denied his access to government buildings and directed his office workers to work remotely, according to spokesperson Erik Pappa.

“The Public Administrator is an elected position and the County is reviewing its options under the law regarding Robert Telles’ current status as the Public Administrator,” according to the statement.

Credits: Reuters