Police investigate whether Las Vegas officer who halted animal hospital robbery was intoxicated

Officers investigating an attempted robbery and police shooting this week at a southwest valley animal hospital smelled alcohol on the off-duty detective who fired a gun at the would-be robber and an investigation of the incident is underway, police said Thursday.

Metropolitan Police Department Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said an internal affairs investigation is ongoing as to whether police detective Lance Spiotto, 48, was impaired when he intervened.

Spiotto was with his pet in the lobby of the West Flamingo Animal Hospital at 5445 W. Flamingo Road at about 2:30 p.m. Monday when a man masked with a red bandana carrying a concealed black semi-automatic handgun tried to rob the animal hospital, according to a police report.

The bandit reached behind the counter to grab the clinic’s cash drawer, and Spiotto jumped into action, brandishing a small silver revolver. Spiotto fired two rounds — one into the floor near the counter and one into the ceiling near the front door, McMahill said.

The two men fought and wrestled on the floor of the animal hospital for more than a minute, and the robber disarmed the police officer and struck him in the head several times. Then the fight continued outside.

A third round was fired from Spiotto’s weapon outside, but investigators aren’t sure exactly when.

Police arrested Ronald Hassan Clark, 46, Monday night after a two-hour standoff at an apartment nearly 2 miles of the animal hospital.

McMahill said Clark initially barricaded himself inside, then crawled through the apartment’s attic space and into an adjacent unit. He was taken into custody without incident, McMahill said.

Detectives said Clark had cased the animal hospital Sunday to figure out where the cash was kept.

Clark was booked into the Clark County Detention Center Tuesday on three counts of assault with a deadly weapon along with counts of robbery, robbery with a deadly weapon, burglary while possessing a gun, shooting a gun within a prohibited structure and possession of a gun by a prohibited person. Police also booked Clark on an unrelated previous misdemeanor charge.

Clark has an extenisive criminal history, with felony convictions in Nevada and Virginia.

In Virginia he was convicted on two counts of larceny in 1995, another count of larceny in 1996, two counts of assault in 1996, and a larceny larceny charge in 2002. In Nevada he was convicted of burglary in 1999 and drug possession with the intent to sell in 2006, McMahill said.

Spiotto suffered a large laceration to the back of his head that required two surgical staples. He was placed on paid leave while the department investigated the incident, a routine procedure in officer-involved shootings. If it turns out he was impaired when he fired his weapon, McMahill said he will face disciplinary action.

Contact Wesley Juhl at wjuhl@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0391. Follow @WesJuhl on Twitter.