The Committee to Protect Journalists:
In response to news reports that police arrested a suspect in the killing of Las Vegas Review-Journal journalist Jeff German, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement on Thursday:
“Las Vegas police have acted quickly in identifying and arresting a suspect in the fatal stabbing of Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Jeff German,” said CPJ Program Director Carlos Martínez de la Serna. “Authorities should ensure that all those involved in this terrible crime are identified and held to account, and should make clear that those who target journalists will face justice.”
German, who covered organized crime and political corruption, was found dead outside his Las Vegas home on Saturday, September 3. On Wednesday evening, police arrested Clark County Public Administrator Robert Telles on suspicion of murder, according to those reports.
Telles lost a re-election bid in June 2022 after German reported on alleged mismanagement of his office, those reports said, noting that Telles denied those allegations at the time. The Review-Journal reported that German had been working on a follow-up story to that reporting in the weeks before he was killed.
In that report, Review-Journal Executive Editor Glenn Cook thanked the Las Vegas police “for their urgency and hard work and for immediately recognizing the terrible significance of Jeff’s killing.”
CPJ was unable to find contact information for Telles or his legal counsel. Telles is due to appear in court on Thursday afternoon, according to reports.