Updated

Updated · Fox 5 Las Vegas · Aug 6

Las Vegas Witnesses Detail 911 Call Before Officer Austin Abdelnabi, 30, Was Killed

Updated

Updated · Fox 5 Las Vegas · Aug 6

Las Vegas Witnesses Detail 911 Call Before Officer Austin Abdelnabi, 30, Was Killed

Q: How did a report of an intoxicated man with a gun end in the death of a Las Vegas officer and the suspect?

The deaths occurred after what began as a call about an armed, apparently intoxicated man escalated into a shootout with responding officers in Las Vegas’ east valley. Police said dispatch received the report shortly before 4 p.m. from a business in the 4500 block of East Tropicana Avenue. The caller said a man was waving a gun and appeared intoxicated. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police officers, aided by police drones, tracked the suspect toward Mountain Vista Street near the Interstate 11 underpass. According to Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill, officers then made contact with the suspect, and the encounter turned into a gun battle. Authorities said the suspect opened fire on officers, and at least one officer returned fire. The suspect was killed at the scene. During the exchange, a 30-year-old LVMPD officer was shot. He was taken to University Medical Center, where firefighters, EMS crews, officers, nurses and doctors tried to save him, but he later died. McMahill said the officer was a Marine veteran who had been with the department since November 2023. Local reports identified him as Officer Austin Abdelnabi. The investigation remained active afterward, with a heavy police presence and road closures in the area. Officials said more details would be released as the officer-involved shooting investigation continued.

Q: What do we still not know about the shooting that killed Officer Austin Abdelnabi near Tropicana and Mountain Vista?

What remains unclear is the full sequence of the gunfight and the suspect’s background. Police have said Officer Austin Abdelnabi was killed after officers responded to a report of an armed, possibly intoxicated person near East Tropicana Avenue and South Mountain Vista Street, and that the suspect opened fire before at least one officer returned fire. But authorities have not yet publicly explained exactly how the confrontation unfolded moment by moment, how many shots were fired, which officers fired, or the precise circumstances in which Abdelnabi was struck. Officials also had not, in the initial briefings and early reports, publicly identified the suspect or detailed a possible motive. It was still unclear why the person was allegedly waving a gun at the business, whether drugs or alcohol were confirmed as factors, and whether the suspect had prior contacts with law enforcement. Investigators also had not released key forensic details, including what type of weapon the suspect used, where Abdelnabi was positioned when he was shot, whether body-camera or drone footage captured the decisive moments, and whether any bystanders were endangered or injured. The department said the investigation was ongoing and that more information was expected within about 72 hours. Until that fuller briefing, many of the central factual questions — exactly what happened, why it happened, and what evidence will confirm the timeline — remained unanswered.

3 articles · Updated · Fox 5 Las Vegas · Aug 6

Just before 4 p.m., Iris Miranda saw a masked man carrying a gun near Tropicana Avenue and ran inside her daughter’s business, prompting Sasha Ruiz to call 911.
Surveillance video showed two Las Vegas police units arriving within minutes, with Ruiz directing an officer toward Murrow Street before investigators say a deadly gunfight followed.
Hours later, detectives confirmed to Ruiz that the ambulance she had seen carried Officer Austin Abdelnabi, who died after responding to the armed-man report.
Ruiz and Miranda said they now view Abdelnabi as the officer who answered their call and saved lives, even as Ruiz struggles with the weight of having made it.
Abdelnabi, a 30-year-old Marine veteran, was killed along with the suspect in what police have described as Metro’s ninth officer-involved shooting this year.