Assistant sheriff shares details on police shooting of man with knife

The Metropolitan Police Department has identified the officer who shot a man in northeast Las Vegas on Monday afternoon.

Officer Vidal Contreras, 30, has been placed on routine paid administrative leave while the shooting is investigated, police said.

Contreras responded to an anonymous call of a man walking through a desert area near Lamb Boulevard and Carey Avenue around noon on Monday. The report said the man may have a knife, police said.

When Contreras arrived, police said he found the man armed with a knife and bleeding from his neck and hands. He told the man to drop the knife, but the man moved toward Contreras, who fired two rounds, police said.

Police on Wednesday identified the man as Seth Greenstone, 31. During a news conference, Assistant Sheriff Brett Zimmerman said police determined Greenstone was who called 911, reporting a man with a knife.

Greenstone works in the area, and had been at work Monday, but left after borrowing a box cutter from a coworker, Zimmerman said.

When Contreras arrived, it appeared as though Greenstone was trying to harm himself, Zimmerman said. During the news conference, police played body camera footage that depicted the encounter.

“There’s a guy with a knife,” Contreras can be heard saying in the clip.

After the shooting, police said Contreras immediately called for medical attention. Greenstone was taken to University Medical Center in critical condition. Contreras was not hurt.

Greenstone remains hospitalized, but stable, police said. He faces charges of assault on a protected person and resisting a public officer. Both charges carry deadly weapon enhancements, records show.

This was Contreras’ first police shooting, Zimmerman said. It marked Metro’s third police shooting of the year.

Warning signs

Signs of suicide can include changes in conversation, behavior and mood, according to the American Association of Suicidology.

If a person talks about being a burden to others and feeling trapped; if a person starts acting recklessly or withdrawing from friends, family and activities; if a person starts experiencing rage, anxiety or a loss of interest, reach out to the person or seek help.

For more information, visit suicidology.org/resources/warning-signs.

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, 1-800-273-8255, provides access to trained telephone counselors, 24/7. The Crisis Text Line is a free, national service available 24/7. Text HOME to 741741.

Contact Alexis Ford at aford@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0335. Follow @alexisdford on Twitter.