Fire station where captain allegedly paid teen for sex removes ‘Safe Place’ signs

The fire station where a Las Vegas fire captain allegedly had sex with a teenage girl has lost its designation as a youth crisis intervention location.

Las Vegas Fire Department Station 47 took down its “Safe Place” signs after officials at the organization that runs the program learned Richard Odell Loughry, 46, was arrested last Monday for allegedly paying a 15-year-old girl $300 for sex.

“We don’t want any youth traffic there whatsoever,” said Arash Ghafoori, executive director of the Nevada Partnership for Homeless Youth, which runs the Safe Place program locally. The program is funded through public-private partnerships.

The Safe Place program is a national effort to give youth facing homelessness, unsafe living environments or a variety of other crisis situations a way to ask for help, according to the organization’s website. All Las Vegas fire stations, Terrible Herbst convenience stores and Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada buses have the designation. There are 427 locations throughout the valley, not including Station 47.

After youths make contact with one of those locations, a representative from the nonprofit partnership will pick them up and connect them to resources.

Station 47 was the only fire station to have the designation revoked. David Riggleman, communications director for the city of Las Vegas, said the station will not be listed as a safe place for the duration of the investigation.

Loughry told police the girl he allegedly paid for sex was advertised online as a 22-year-old, and that he did not know she was underage. He is charged with two counts of statutory sexual seduction; three counts of lewdness with a child younger than 16; two counts of child abuse, neglect or endangerment; and one count of soliciting prostitution of a minor. All charges are felonies.

Contact Blake Apgar at bapgar@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5298. Follow @blakeapgar on Twitter.