Murders, Mysteries, and Misdemeanors of Las Vegas

Las Vegas is a city of glimmering lights, tanned celebrities, and mega-resorts. Every year, millions of tourists visit, seeking time in the sun, entertainment, and perhaps to return home with more money than they arrived with. Some will. Most won’t. There are too many things—such as gambling, shopping, and fine dining—to suck the vacation budget as dry as the Mojave Desert that surrounds the city. That’s the Las Vegas featured on the slick tourist brochures and TV ads. But there is another side. This is the dark side of Vegas, where money is the be-all and the end-all, the side the mob once ruled, a side where life is cheap and crime can happen any time, day or night. This is a look at today’s and yesterday’s crimes—drug deals gone sideways, prostitutes murdered senselessly, spouses offing spouses, cops being killed, mob hits, and a mass shooting—all part of the murders, mysteries, and misdemeanors of Sin City.