Armed Fugitive on Crime Spree Prompts Lockdown at Univ. of Nevada
The man followed a vehicle into a University of Nevada parking lot and began firing, prompting a campus lockdown.
The fugitive has a lengthy criminal history of 70 arrest and 30 convictions.
An armed fugitive was arrested on Thursday in California following a crime spree that led to the lockdown of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas campus.
Kevin Michael Kealoha, 34, was wanted in Maui, Hawaii for several contempt-of-court warrants and an arrest warrant for promoting a dangerous drug in the first degree, Maui police spokesman Lieutenant Gregg Okamoto told Maui News.
Kealoha carjacked a Chevrolet Cruze on Thursday in Las Vegas. The Nevada Highway Patrol attempted to pull over the vehicle for reasons unrelated to the carjacking when Kealoha sped off.
Later that morning, police were called to UNLV after reports of a shooting on campus, which was later linked to Kealoha.
A woman told police that she was driving with her 11-year-old-daughter when the Cruze started tailgating her pickup truck. She turned into a UNLV public safety building parking lot where Kealoha followed her, firing seven to nine rounds at her car, according to authorities. The woman and her daughter were not hurt.
The on-campus shooting prompted a brief lockdown. UNLV officials sent a message urging everyone to shelter in place and to secure doors until the campus was deemed secure.
The Cruze was subsequently found abandoned in the suburban town of Henderson, Nevada.
Later that day, Kealoha stole a Honda Civic at gunpoint at a California gas station, leading police on a high-speed pursuit, said Cindy Bachman, spokeswoman for the sheriff’s department in San Bernadino County.
Kealoha crashed into a fence and then intentionally slammed into a deputy’s car, leading to his arrest.
Kealoha has a lengthy criminal history of 70 arrest and 30 convictions, including forgery and theft, fraudulent use of a credit card, second degree criminal damage, reckless driving, and leaving the scene of an accident.
In August 2009, he was driving a stolen vehicle when he struck a police patrol car and three other cars while attempting to flee authorities. He completed his five-year probation period related to the incident in March 2015.
Kealoha is currently being held on $250,000 bail. The charges expected to be brought against him include attempted murder, robbery, grand larceny, carjacking and attempted kidnapping.
He will be arraigned on Monday in California and will likely be extradited to Nevada, according to Bachman.
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About the Author
Amy Rock, Executive Editor
Amy is Campus Safety’s Executive Editor. Prior to joining the editorial team in 2017, she worked in both events and digital marketing.
Amy has many close relatives and friends who are teachers, motivating her to learn and share as much as she can about campus security. She has a minor in education and has worked with children in several capacities, further deepening her passion for keeping students safe.
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