Prominent Investigative Reporter Who Spearheaded Coverage of 2017 Las Vegas Massacre Found Dead Outside His Home
Las Vegas Review-Journal investigative reporter Jeff German was found stabbed to death outside of his home over the weekend and his killer remains at large.
Newsroom colleagues mourned his passing.
“The Review-Journal family is devastated to lose Jeff,” Executive Editor Glenn Cook said, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “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.”
German was noted for a wide range of investigative reports about crime in Las Vegas, and also took a lead role in the Review-Journal’s coverage of the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting.
Police said they were devoting maximum resources to find a suspect in the German slaying.
“LVMPD enacted its major case protocol Saturday in the homicide investigation,” Las Vegas police said, according to the Review-Journal. “This brings together a variety of resources to maximize the investigative effort and apply a sense of urgency to the apprehension of the suspect.”
The Clark County coroner confirmed that 69-year-old Las Vegas journalist, Jeff German, died of multiple sharp force injuries, and the manner of German’s death was a homicide.
Breaking story: https://t.co/DupvpneicX pic.twitter.com/dAxAYLNnd0— KTNV 13 Action News (@KTNV) September 4, 2022
Police found German, 69, after a neighbor called to report that his body was outside, said Metropolitan Police Department Capt. Dori Koren, according to the Review-Journal.
German had been stabbed multiple times, the newspaper reported.
According to the Review-Journal, police said there was an altercation Friday morning involving German and an unknown person that led to the stabbing.
“We believe the altercation took place outside of the home,” Koren said. “We do have some leads. We are pursuing a suspect but the suspect is outstanding.”
Cook said German had not told anyone at the newspaper that he was in fear for his safety, the Review-Journal reported.
Cook said the question of motive dominated the newsroom.
“He will be terribly missed by his family and colleagues, and we are all in shock over his senseless killing,” Cook said, according to The Washington Post.
“It’s our hope that they find this person very quickly so that we can get answers to all the questions that we have as his colleagues and friends, as it relates to the work we all do,” he said, according to the Los Angeles Times.
I am shocked and saddened to learn of the killing of reporter Jeff German, one of my colleagues at the Las Vegas Review-Journal. I took a lot of photos in the newsroom during my time there. Here are some of my pictures of Jeff. News story: https://t.co/xmFL4QW8L5 pic.twitter.com/0A01P5LCom
— Harrison Keely (@harrisonkeely) September 4, 2022
German’s death led to praise for his work.
“He was a fearless reporter and never shied away from tough stories no matter who was involved,” Democratic Rep. Dina Titus tweeted.. “Many exposed need for reform which made our city better.”
So sad to read about Jeff German’s death. He was a fearless reporter and never shied away from tough stories no matter who was involved. Many exposed need for reform which made our city better.https://t.co/OAfkDy2xP6
— Dina Titus (@dinatitus) September 4, 2022
Geoff Schumacher, vice president of exhibits and programs at The Mob Museum in Las Vegas, told the Review-Journal that German “was totally dedicated to his work as a reporter.”
“He was not someone who it was, ‘Maybe I’ll be a reporter for a while and then I’ll go do something else.’ He was a reporter probably from birth to death. Ink was running very heavily in his veins,” he said.
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