Coroner IDs man shot to death in Las Vegas during beer theft
A man who Las Vegas police say was fatally shot by a convenience store clerk Friday morning during a “beer skip” has been identified as a 56-year-old man by the Clark County coroner’s office.
Robert Lee Cook was pronounced dead of multiple gunshot wounds at University Medical Center at 6:56 a.m., about 45 minutes after the shooting at the Stateside Express convenience store, the coroner’s office said. His death was ruled a homicide.
Shortly before 6:15 a.m., Cook and a woman walked out of the convenience store at 950 Las Vegas Blvd. North, near Washington Avenue, with at least three cases of beer, police have said.
The clerk, later identified by the Metropolitan Police Department as 26-year-old Suse Antunez-Garcia, and the store manager followed the pair outside to a vehicle, where another man in the driver’s seat was waiting for the pair.
The woman was able to get into the vehicle, but the manager pulled Cook out of the car as he was getting in, leading to a “very brief” struggle, homicide Lt. Ray Spencer said Friday.
Cook broke free from the manager’s grip, and as he was getting back into the car, Antunez-Garcia allegedly fired two rounds into the car, striking Cook twice in his lower abdomen and “leg area,” Spencer said.
The vehicle sped off but about 15 minutes later brought Cook to UMC.
Antunez-Garcia was arrested later Friday on a murder charge.
She remained held Monday on $10,000 bail at the Clark County Detention Center, jail records show. A status hearing in the case is scheduled for Tuesday morning in Las Vegas Justice Court.
Contact Rio Lacanlale at rlacanlale@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Follow @riolacanlale on Twitter.
