Las Vegas Police Use Snapchat to Help Nab Trio of Accused Killers

By Casey Harrison

Source Las Vegas Sun

The brother of a man who died in a gun fight near Sunset Park in August was one of three people arrested last week in what police called a retaliatory murder, according to warrants.

Exavian Diaz, 18, Mateo Facio, 21, and Briana Matus, 20, were arrested Oct. 20 and were each charged with one count of open murder, conspiracy to commit murder and three counts of attempted murder with a deadly weapon stemming from a quadruple shooting that killed Kieron Hatchett, 23, in the early hours of Aug. 29, according to booking logs. Facio was also charged with battery and both he and Matus face an additional count of parole violation.

Hatchett was shot twice in the head, while De'Marcco Alexander received injuries to his right eye and both hands; Travis Montgomery suffered a fractured femur and Jordan Youngblood suffered a graze wound on his thigh in a shooting that took place just before 2 a.m. Aug. 29 at Rainbow Boulevard and Westcliff Street. Facio and Matus are accused of following the four, who were riding in a car together at the time of the shooting, and opening fire while they were waiting to turn left. Diaz is accused of relaying a photo of Alexander to Facio and Matus via Snapchat before the shooting so they knew who to target, according to a Metro Police warrant.

Investigators were able to tie the trio to the shooting after they received an anonymous tip, compiled surveillance footage from nearby businesses, along with Snapchat archives.

Diaz's brother, Anthony Emilian, was fatally shot after an argument in the 3100 block of East Sunset Road, near Pecos Road, on Aug. 13, police said. Emilian pulled out a gun and fired several rounds, and Alexander, who was at the altercation, returned fire in self-defense, according to police. Several people were transported to nearby hospitals, including Emilian, who later died.

Police say a white Nissan Altima pulled into the emergency room bay at MountainView Hospital shortly after the time of the shooting. When the Altima pulled up to the hospital, Youngblood exited the vehicle and stated he and his friends had been injured in a shooting.

Alexander and Montgomery also exited the vehicle and Hatchett was removed by medical personnel and placed on a gurney, but he and Alexander were transported to Sunrise Hospital due to the severity of their injuries, police said.

Hatchett was declared dead later that afternoon with the cause of death ruled a homicide by gunshot wounds to the head, according to the Clark County Coroner's Office.

Investigators later learned the four had been partying after hours at a restaurant in the 1700 block of South Rainbow Boulevard, near Oakey Boulevard, the night before. There was an altercation between employees that caused partygoers to leave, but the four stayed to help clean up the business and left at 1:48 a.m., police said.

The four left in the Nissan and were followed by two friends in a silver Buick Century. The two cars were stopped at a red light when the vehicle containing Facio and Matus opened fire. Police were able to recover 13 cartridge casings at the scene and counted 16 bullet holes in the Nissan, according to the warrant.

On Aug. 30, police were able to obtain surveillance footage from a business near the restaurant that held the party attended by the victims. That revealed that a black Chevrolet pickup truck arrived at the parking lot at about 10:30 p.m. and had been waiting for the group to leave, police said.

Police received their anonymous tip the next day. The person said they were at the restaurant and left the opposite way just before the shooting and that the party was being held for Alexander and Montgomery.

They said they believed the shooting was in retaliation for Emilian's death on Aug. 13. After Emilian was shot, they said, several people received a Snapchat message from the username "Vegazmack" asking for names, addresses and phone numbers of the people that were present. It was later revealed that Alexander fit the description for the person who shot Emilian, according to the warrant.

Talking with the anonymous tipster led police to look into the background of Emilian and his associates. That led police to an April 30 event in which Emilian shot at a black Chevrolet pickup truck belonging to Matus, his ex-girlfriend. Investigators noticed a description of the truck matched that of the vehicle related to the shooting. A warrant was also issued to look into the message history of "Vegazmack."

On Sept. 1, patrol vehicles drove by Matus' residence, where a black Chevy truck was parked in the driveway and took photos of the vehicle, confirming it was the same vehicle involved in the April 30 shooting. On Sept. 8, police learned of a video sent to "Vegazmack" from an account believed to belong to Facio the night of the shooting from the restaurant parking lot.

One month later, on Oct. 1, police executed a warrant to search Matus' truck, where ammunition cartridges with the same stampings as the shell casings found at the scene of the shooting. Ultimately, Diaz allegedly used a photo posted to Alexander's Snapchat to determine what he was wearing that night and relayed that information to Facio and Matus, who were already near the restaurant.

Diaz, Matus and Facio all have bail hearings set for Thursday. Attorneys representing them could not be reached for comment.

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