Gunfire On Vegas Strip Leaves 3 Dead At Popular Vacation Spot
LAS VEGAS (KDKA) -- The fountain show outside the Bellagio is a must see site for thousands of vacationing Pittsburghers every year.
But it was past this landmark that a Range Rover and a Maserati passed on Las Vegas Boulevard just before arriving beneath the Bally's marquee at about 4:30 a.m. Thursday.
"We had two vehicles stopped at the light on Las Vegas Boulevard at Flamingo," said Sgt. John Sheahan, of Las Vegas Metro Police.
And there, at that intersection - which is busy even at that hour of the morning - someone in the Range Rover rolled down the tinted windows and began shooting.
"Opened fire on a Maserati that was next to it at the light," said Sgt. Sheahan. "Both vehicles proceeded through the intersection and the Maserati struck a taxicab. The taxi cab caught fire and then exploded. We have two additional people dead who were in that taxi cab."
The driver of the Maserati was also killed, his passenger wounded and three other vehicles were damaged in the collision. The Range Rover sped off and has not been found.
With Bally's, the Bellagio, Caesars Palace and more nearby, there was no way tourist could miss it.
And it follows the Feb. 6 shooting of two people in a parking garage on the strip, and a stabbing in a Mandalay Bay elevator last Saturday.
Cale Ramaker is an anchor at the CBS station in Las Vegas.
"Right now, Metro Police - the big police organization out here - has not even loosely tied any of those incidents together," said Ramaker.
"These kinds of things do not happen along the strip; and that's why, not only nationwide but locally, it's a big story today because it is considered to be a very safe place," he added. "There are people out at all hours; it is well lit, which is a major thing in terms of it being safe."
There's no word on a motive yet, but Las Vegas police believe the Maserati driver was specifically targeted, the incident far from random and should not be a concern to the 32 million people who visit Vegas every year.
Las Vegas is the third most popular vacation destination for people from the Pittsburgh area after Disney and Tampa, Fla.
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