UPDATE: Robert Telles was arrested on suspicion of murder. Read more.
LAS VEGAS – Las Vegas police served a search warrant at the home of a Democratic city official in connection to last week’s fatal stabbing of local investigative journalist Jeff German.
Investigators entered the private residence of Robert Telles, a Clark County public administrator Wednesday morning, according to The Las Vegas Review-Journal.
German, 69, had written extensively about the alleged hostile work environment Telles, 45, reportedly ran at the city office, as well as a reported inappropriate relationship with a staffer.
German was working on a story about Telles the week he was killed, according to the news outlet.
Telles had previously accused German of targeting him in a “smear” campaign, the New York Post reported.
German, one of Nevada’s most accomplished journalists, worked for the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He was discovered on the side of his home and died of “multiple sharp force injuries” in a homicide, the Clark County Office of the Coroner/Medical Examiner said Sunday.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department didn’t specify any further details regarding the search of Telles’ home or the ongoing homicide investigation.
“No further information will be provided at this time,” police said in a statement.
Telles lost his re-election bid in June following German’s reports, placing third in a Democratic primary.
Moreover, Telles repeatedly referenced the reporter and his articles on Twitter, writing in a June 18 tweet: “Looking forward to lying smear piece #4 by @JGermanRJ. #onetrickpony I think he’s mad that I haven’t crawled into a hole and died.”
Looking forward to lying smear piece #4 by @JGermanRJ. #onetrickpony I think he’s mad that I haven’t crawled into a hole and died. 😂 @LVRJ #LasVegas
— Rob Telles (@RobTellesLV) June 18, 2022
In another tweet that day, Telles wrote: “Wife hears rustling in the trash* Her: ‘Honey, is there a wild animal in the trash?’ Me: ‘No, dear. Look like it’s @JGermanRJ going through our trash for his 4th story on me.’ Oh, Jeff…”
Telles did not respond to requests for comment in the wake of the search warrant, the Post reported.
Detectives described two clips of surveillance footage relating to the murder investigation, one showing a person wearing a large straw hat and orange, reflective construction jacket.
The second clip showed a vehicle — a reddish GMC Yukon Denali with chrome handles, which police say was connected with the attack. A vehicle parked at Telles’ home matched that description, according to the Review-Journal.
A reddish-maroon colored GMC Yukon Denali was towed from Telles’ property at about 12:50 p.m on Wednesday.
Fox News also documented the animus that developed between Telles and German during the reporting of “internal dissension” with the public administrator’s office.
“The Clark County Public Administrator’s office has been mired in turmoil and internal dissension over the past two years, with allegations of emotional stress, bullying and favoritism leading to secret videotaping of the boss and a co-worker outside the office,” reads one of German’s articles, published in May.
Staffers reportedly filmed Telles and one of his staff members, Roberta Lee-Kennett, in the back seat of a car to secure proof of the pair’s “inappropriate relationship,” Fox reported.
Police have not said that Telles is a suspect in the homicide.
German’s work in Las Vegas spanned four decades. He made a career of breaking big stories about everything from organized crime and government malfeasance to political scandals and the Oct. 1, 2017 mass shooting at the Harvest Music Festival on the Las Vegas strip that saw 60 people killed and at least 413 injured.
“The Review-Journal family is devastated to lose Jeff,” Executive Editor Glenn Cook said in the immediate aftermath of German’s death. “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.”
