The Daily Blog

Jul 10

One-Punch Murder: John Massie Arrested After Bizarre Las Vegas Casino Fight.

Las Vegas — Police say a racial comment in a Las Vegas Strip casino restroom preceded a single fatal punch that left a Utah man dead and a 37-year-old Florida man jailed on a murder charge.

A Las Vegas police report identifies the man killed in the 12:45 a.m. Wednesday confrontation as John Massie. The report doesn’t provide Massie’s age or hometown.

Benjamin Gerard Hawkins of Gainesville, Fla., was arrested at O’Sheas Las Vegas Casino shortly after police say Massie was felled by a single punch to the face.

Hawkins is black. Massie is white.

Police say Hawkins threw the single fatal punch after Massie made a comment about a black man in a yellow shirt.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

A tourist from Florida was jailed on a murder charge Wednesday in the death of a Utah man who died after a one-punch fight between two tourists inside a Las Vegas Strip casino.

Benjamin G. Hawkins, 37, of Gainesville, Fla., was arrested shortly after the 12:45 a.m. Wednesday slaying. It followed an exchange of words in a restroom at O’Sheas Las Vegas Casino, police homicide Lt. Lewis Roberts said.

It wasn’t clear which man was the aggressor before the Utah man was felled by a single punch to the face.

May 25

Beyonce To Be Saluted by Michelle Obama, Bono, Stevie Wonder, Lady Gaga.

Beyonce, prepare to be bowled over. A highlight at this weekend’s Billboard Music Awards in Las Vegas will undoubtedly be the tribute to honor the pop star with the Millennium Award. And the stage will be overflowing with famous friends saluting her talent.

Access Hollywood is reporting that none other than First Lady Michelle Obama will step into the spotlight take part in the tribute. Beyonce serenaded President Obama and his wife with ‘At Last,’ as they danced at an inauguration ball in early 2009.

Insiders say other luminaries eager to honor Beyonce include Lady Gaga (her collaborator on the hit single ‘Telephone’), Bono, Stevie Wonder and Barbra Streisand.
Ken Jeong, star of ‘Hangover 2’ and ‘Community,’ will host the star-studded event, which will also include performances from Nicki Minaj, Rihanna, Keith Urban, Cee Lo Green and the Black Eyed Peas.

The roster of presenters includes Justin Timberlake (fresh off hosting ‘SNL’), Selena Gomez and ‘Glee’ star Matthew Morrison. The Billboard Music Awards will air Sunday (8 p.m. ET) on ABC.

May 21

Charles Oakley sues Las Vegas resort over ‘beat down’.

LAS VEGAS — Charles Oakley, one of the NBA’s all-time tough guys and now a Charlotte Bobcats assistant, has sued a Las Vegas resort over what he calls a May 2010 “gang-style beat down” by security guards who injured him.

Oakley filed the lawsuit Thursday in Clark County District Court against the Aria hotel-casino at MGM Resorts International’s CityCenter complex, the Las Vegas Sun reported. Five security officers also were named in the lawsuit.

Oakley was an invited guest at Aria’s VIP pool area May 28 when he left the area, the complaint says, but security officers and staff prevented him from re-entering.

After a “verbal altercation” with officers, Oakley attempted to return to his room when he was “assaulted” by them in a secluded area of the resort, the lawsuit alleges.

The complaint contends the officers wrestled Oakley to the ground and punched and handcuffed him, and that he was taken to the hospital with injuries to his neck, back, head and wrist, “all or some of which may be permanent and disabling.”

The complaint alleges negligence, assault, assault with excessive force, battery, false imprisonment and defamation. It seeks unspecified general, special and punitive damages.

An MGM Resorts International spokeswoman said the company doesn’t comment on pending litigation.

The 47-year-old Oakley has been among VIPs who have participated in Michael Jordan’s Celebrity Invitational golf fundraiser presented by Aria.

The 6-foot-9, 245-pound Oakley was a power forward for Chicago, New York, Toronto, Washington and Houston between 1985 and 2004. Now an assistant coach with Charlotte, he developed a reputation over the years as an enforcer, rebounding machine and Jordan’s bodyguard.

May 11

Manny Pacquiao Involved In Car Accident Hours Before Las Vegas Fight; Boxer Not Injured.

LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Manny Pacquiao was involved in a minor vehicle accident on Saturday but his management team said he was not injured and set for his WBO welterweight title defense against Shane Mosley later in the day.

“Manny is ready to go,” the Filipino southpaw’s trainer Freddie Roach told reporters at the MGM Grand where the scheduled 12-round bout will held on Saturday evening.

According to his management team, Pacquiao was returning from church when the sport utility vehicle he was in was hit from behind at low speed by one of his security vehicles.

A Pacquiao team spokesman said the 10-times world champion was “a little shaken up” but not injured.

The 32-year-old Filipino, already acknowledged as one of the best offensive fighters of all time, is a 6-1 favorite to beat American Mosley at the MGM Garden Arena.

Although Mosley is a former three-division world champion, at the age of 39 he is in the twilight of his impressive career.

Mosley, 46-6-1 (39 knockouts), has not competed in the ring since his draw with Sergio Mora in September.

Pacquiao, 52-3-2 (38 KOs), is fighting for the first time since he recorded a ruthless points victory over Mexican Antonio Margarito in November for his eighth world title in an unprecedented eight weight class.

May 2

Donald Trump Curses, Says Our Leaders Are ‘Stupid’.

Potential presidential candidate Donald Trump made colorful and eyebrow-raising remarks while speaking at the Treasure Island casino in Las Vegas on Thursday night.

He reportedly called the United States “not a great country” and cursed multiple times during his speech. The AP reports:

In one of his many curse-bombs, Trump lamented the nation’s focus on building schools in war-torn Afghanistan, while neglecting education in the United States.
He said he would not help struggling nations such as South Korea or Libya without payment and promised to use swear words while negotiating with China.

“I’m not interested in protecting none of them unless they pay,” he said.

A frequent critic of the federal health care law passed last year, Trump said the Supreme Court should decide the dozens of lawsuits challenging the legislation and urged district courts not to waste their time on it.

“Our leaders are stupid, they are stupid people,” suggested Trump in taking issue with President Barack Obama’s handling of foreign policy issues related to Libya, Iraq, China and Afghanistan. “It’s just very, very sad.”

According to the Las Vegas Sun, he asserted, “When people are screwing you, you don’t give them state dinners.” Rather, he said, McDonald’s should be served up instead.

Later in his remarks, the billionaire and real estate mogul reportedly said, “There is a really good chance that I won’t win because of one of these blood-sucking politicians.”

According to the Associated Press, the “lavish” event had an open bar and drew more than 1000 people. It was hosted by two Republican women’s groups.

As for whether Trump is any closer to making a decision on whether or not he plans to run for president in 2012, the possible contender declined to confirm one way or the other on Thursday night. However, when one woman at the event shouted “run for president,” the billionaire reportedly responded, “I think I am going to make you very happy on that.”

The Las Vegas Review Journal reports that Trump signaled he could be expected to decide on his plans for 2012 by June 1. “I’ve never done this before and who knows what will happen,” he said.

Feb 27

Gunman Flees Las Vegas Casino with $32,000 in Chips.

Police in Las Vegas are checking surveillance video to determine if cameras captured an armed robbery that went down at the Rio Hotel Casino at about 4:40 a.m. Thursday. The Las Vegas Sun reports the suspected robber arrived by taxi to the casino decked out in a fedora hat, fake mustache and sunglasses.
Markus Martin, a spokesman for the police, tells the Las Vegas Sun a dealer slapped the man’s hand away when he attempted to take chips, but then the man displayed a gun. No one was injured.

The robber walked away with about $32,000 before fleeing the scene in a taxi.

An anonymous source from the casino tells the Associated Press the robber made off with about $21,000 in $1,000 chips. The rest were worth $500, $100 and $25 each. The source requested to remain anonymous because he was not authorized to publicly release details related to the crime.

The robbery follows a Wednesday court appearance for Anthony M. Carleo, who allegedly stole about $1.4 million in chips last December from the Bellagio hotel-casino and then sped away on a motorcycle.

Carleo was arrested on February 3 after he was allegedly caught making a transaction to sell the pink $25,000 chips to an undercover police officer. The robbery prompted the Bellagio to do away with $25,000 chips.

Dec 21

Police continued searching today for a dancer and former NFL cheerleader who has been missing for a week, and her friends and family began handing out fliers on the Las Vegas strip to help the search. Deborah Flores-Narvaez, 31, is a dancer in the Luxor’s “Fantasy” show. Police said she was last seen leaving her Las Vegas home around 7 p.m. last Sunday.

Dec 19

Floyd Mayweather arrested in Vegas.

LAS VEGAS — Floyd Mayweather Jr. spent a night in a Las Vegas jail before his release Friday on a misdemeanor battery warrant stemming from an allegation that the boxer poked a security guard in the face last month outside his home.

The second arrest in three months for the undefeated prizefighter drew allegations from his lawyer that police and prosecutors overreacted to a minor criminal accusation and that the 33-year-old Mayweather was getting “unequal punitive exaggerated treatment.”

“This is a misdemeanor,” attorney Richard Wright told The Associated Press. He noted that police usually write a ticket for a misdemeanor, or issue a court summons at the jail.

Wright accused District Attorney David Roger of “going out of his way to treat [Mayweather] differently than anyone else.”

Roger didn’t immediately respond to messages seeking comment.

Mayweather was arrested just before midnight Thursday at the posh Bellagio resort on the Las Vegas Strip and booked early Friday into the Clark County jail without bail.

Police initially said the boxer might remain in jail pending a Monday court date. But defense attorney Karen Winckler intervened, and Mayweather was freed less than 12 hours after his arrest.

The misdemeanor charge stems from a confrontation Nov. 15 during which authorities allege Mayweather poked a 21-year-old security guard repeatedly in the left cheek during a loud verbal confrontation over parking tickets. Mayweather’s attorneys have denied wrongdoing on his behalf.

The warrant was issued Dec. 8 by a Las Vegas justice of the peace, but he immediately recalled it. It was reinstated Dec. 13 after prosecutors complained that Mayweather was receiving preferential treatment.

The judge, Tony Abbatangelo, scheduled a Tuesday hearing to determine whether Mayweather should remain free pending trial. The misdemeanor case carries a possible six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.

Mayweather is one of the boxing’s richest and most recognizable figures, with 25 knockouts in his 41 wins. He goes by the nickname “Money,” and earned more than $20 million in May from a single fight in Las Vegas against “Sugar” Shane Mosley.

But he has also been dogged in recent years by allegations of violence and confrontations at home and at Las Vegas clubs.

Mayweather has misdemeanor battery and assault convictions in Las Vegas and his hometown of Grand Rapids, Mich., and is facing a felony coercion, grand larceny and robbery case stemming from a September dispute with his children and their mother at her home.

He faces trial Jan. 24 in that case, and could face up to 34 years in prison if convicted.

Sep 30

LAS VEGAS (Sept. 30) — Clark County coroner says actor Tony Curtis has died.

Coroner Mike Murphy says the 85-year-old actor died at 9:25 p.m. MDT Wednesday at his Las Vegas area home of a cardiac arrest.

Sep 22

Paris Hilton can’t catch a break. After pleading guilty Monday to two misdemeanors in her Las Vegas cocaine case, Japanese officials have delayed Hilton’s entry into the country, the socialite’s spokeswoman said. The 29-year-old star was stopped by immigration authorities, who are considering refusing Hilton entry into Japan because of her drug charges and sentence.

She was scheduled to appear at a news conference in Tokyo on Wednesday to promote her fashion line, but that appearance was apparently canceled. Hilton was forced to cancel her tour and returned home when she was denied entry at Tokyo’s airport Wednesday following a drug violation in the U.S. — running afoul of strict Japanese laws that have tripped up celebrities from Paul McCartney to Diego Maradona.

“I’m going back home, and I look forward to coming back to Japan in the future,” a smiling Hilton told reporters before departing on her private jet.
The trip had been planned before Hilton’s arrest last month in Las Vegas after an officer found a small amount of cocaine in her purse. She pleaded guilty Monday to drug possession and obstructing an officer and was placed on informal probation for one year.

The terms of her sentence did not restrict travel overseas.

Her publicist, Dawn Miller, said Hilton plans to make the trips at a later date.

“Paris is very disappointed and fought hard to keep her business commitments and see her fans, but she is forced to postpone her commitments in Asia,” she said in a statement. “Paris understands and respects the rules and laws of the immigration authorities in Japan and fully wishes to cooperate with them.”

On Monday, Hilton pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor charges stemming from her arrest for drug possession last month at a Las Vegas hotel-casino. Hilton will serve a year of probation and must complete a drug abuse program, pay a $2,000 fine and serve 200 hours of community service.