Las Vegas elected official charged with murder of veteran investigative journalist, pleads not guilty

Jeff German was an investigative reporter for the Las Vegas Review-Journal who worked as a journalist for over 40 years. One of German’s big stories was on Ted Binion, a Las Vegas casino giant whose drug overdose in 1998 was later investigated as a homicide. German’s book Murder in Sin City details the investigation.

Robert Telles, the Clark County public administrator, lost the Democratic primary for reelection in June 2022. His term expires Dec. 31, 2022.

Further Details

In 2010, German joined the Review-Journal after more than two decades at the Las Vegas Sun, where he reported on courts, politics, labor, government, and organized crime, The Associated Press reported. His career began at the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel in the late 1970s.

German “quickly developed sources across the city and became known for his skill at coaxing everyone from cops to defense lawyers into trusting him with information as he wrote about organized crime, mobsters and political leaders in need of scrutiny,” The New York Times said.

After the 2017 mass shooting in Las Vegas, German reported that the shooter shot at nearby jet fuel tanks before opening fire on a crowd at the country music festival. The tanks did not explode, but his report led to a safety review of the fuel system.

Per The Times, German’s work also included investigations into extravagant spending by the city’s tourism agency in 2017; sexual harassment claims in the coroner’s office in 2021; and allegations of discrimination and labor law violations from the Las Vegas Raiders football team in 2022.

In early 2022, German began investigating claims of a hostile work environment fueled by Telles at the Clark County public administrator’s office. In May, he published a lengthy article exploring allegations of bullying and favoritism, emotional stress, and an inappropriate relationship Telles had with a female staff member.

“According to the workers: Telles has a temper and demeans holdover employees. He assigns them unnecessary work, has set unrealistic performance goals, won’t respond to questions they have about their changing duties and tries to dig up dirt on them,” German wrote. “He also prohibits them from using cellphones at work and discourages them from socializing and gossiping in the office. Anyone who questions his authority is chastised, the workers said.”

German quoted Telles in the article. “These allegations that I’ve chained people to the wall, or something, are bogus,” Telles said. “They make it sound as though everybody is miserable in this office. I’ve done my best to try to be as nice and friendly this whole time.”

In June, Telles lost his bid for reelection, a defeat many attributed to German’s reporting. On the evening of Sept. 2, Telles reportedly went to German’s home in northwest Las Vegas, where he lay in wait for the reporter to exit. Investigators believe an altercation occurred before Telles stabbed German multiple times.

In the weeks before his murder, German had been following leads for a potential follow-up story on Telles, the Review-Journal reported.

Outcome

Telles arrested and charged

Neighborhood surveillance from the night of the murder revealed footage of a person “wearing an orange work shirt and a wide-brim straw hat” approaching German’s home, CBS reported. Police also noted that a similar figure drove off in a red SUV.

On Sept. 6, a Review-Journal photographer took photos of Telles washing an identical SUV in his driveway. The next day, investigators issued a search warrant for Telles’s home, The Associated Press reported. Police arrested Telles hours later and matched his DNA with samples found under German’s fingernails.

Two days later, Telles appeared in county court before Justice of the Peace Elana Lee Graham, who ruled he would be held without bail. On Sept. 12, the Clark County district attorney’s office filed a criminal complaint in Las Vegas Justice Court, charging Telles with murder, FOX 5 KVVU-TV reported. The murder was “willful, deliberate and premeditated,” the complaint stated, accusing Telles of stabbing German seven times.

Telles’s arraignment was scheduled for the next day, but his lawyer requested that the hearing be pushed back. Prosecutors agreed and a judge rescheduled the hearing.

On Sept. 20, Telles was formally charged with open murder. Prosecutors are seeking to remove Telles from office, NBC News reported.

“Clark County has taken the first step in asking the court to remove Robert Telles from elected office as the Public Administrator,” the county stated.

“The next step would be for the court to take action and declare that Robert Telles has neglected to perform the official duties of the office and to remove him. Upon the Court’s order, Clark County would be able to formally appoint his replacement until voters elect a new Public Administrator this November,” the county continued.

A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for Oct. 26, 2022, to determine if there is enough evidence to order Telles to stand trial. As of Sept. 26, 2022, there were no further developments.

Journalists mourn

Reporters mourned the loss of German. Glenn Cook, executive editor of the Review-Journal, said the newspaper was “devastated to lose Jeff.”

“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,” Cook added.

“There’s so many questions right now and answers we don’t know to stuff, but I’ll tell you he was fearless,” said Ron Futrell, an 8 News Now reporter, who worked closely with German. “That’s one thing he was, and you can’t do some of the stories he did without being fearless and that’s what he was in that sense. You can see it in his writing.”

Steve Sebelius, the Review-Journal’s politics and government editor, said he “woke up to a bunch of texts from people, I had no idea how it happened, why it happened. I’m still shocked by it.”

“He was 69 years old, and he was learning how to do a podcast and adapting like he was like a millennial. It was really amazing to see him go off in new ways of telling stories,” Sebelius added.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a nonprofit that protects press freedom around the world, condemned German’s murder. “We are deeply saddened to learn of the killing of Las Vegas Review-Journal journalist Jeff German, and express condolences to the journalist’s family and colleagues,” CPJ Program Director Carlos Martinez de la Serna said. “Police must conduct a swift and transparent investigation into this killing and clearly determine the motive. Whoever killed German should be held to account.”

De la Serna also responded to Telles’s arrest, highlighting the importance of holding people who harm journalists accountable. “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,” de la Serna said.

Telles removed from office

On Oct. 5, at a hearing, Clark County District Judge David Jones ordered that Telles be removed from his position as Clark County public administrator.

Telles pleads not guilty

On Oct. 20, Telles was indicted for murder by a grand jury. He was charged with one count of murder with a deadly weapon against a victim who was 60 years or older.

Six days later, Telles pleaded not guilty at his arraignment. Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson said that he and a panel of prosecutors would not seek the death penalty for Telles due to a lack of qualifying aggravating factors. Prosecutors said the evidence against Telles was overwhelming, including DNA believed to be from Telles found beneath German’s fingernails and other surveillance footage, CBS News reported.

On Nov. 2, Clark County District Judge Michelle Leavitt scheduled Telles’ trial date for April 17, 2023. Telles will remain in the Clark County Detention Center without bail, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.