LAS VEGAS — Hundreds of photos of a murdered investigative journalist’s home and neighborhood were found on the cell phone and computer of a local Democratic politician accused of “to lie in wait” and kill the reporter, who had written several articles critical of the official, a Nevada grand jury was told Monday.
Other photos taken by Robert Telles’ devices include an image of a single gray sneaker with a distinctive black pattern and a photo of Telles’ work computer at the Clark County Public Administrator and Guardian’s office with results from an Internet search via a password-protected site showing the name, home address, vehicle license plate number and date of birth of slain reporter Jeff German.
Prosecutor Christopher Hamner noted to the jury that the photo was taken on Aug. 23, 2022, less than two weeks before German was stabbed to death in a side yard of his home.
“Is this image from Mr. Telles’ phone?” Hamner asked Matthew Hovanec, a Las Vegas digital forensics supervisor who testified Monday about “extracting” the data from Telles’ devices.
“That’s right,” Hovanec replied.
Detective Justine Gatus, the lead Las Vegas police detective investigating German’s death, was the key — and final — witness called Monday as prosecutors rested their case after four days of testimony from more than two dozen witnesses.
Telles has pleaded not guilty to murder and faces life in prison if the jury finds him guilty. Prosecutors are not seeking the death penalty.
Telles insists he did not kill German and that he was framed for the crime. He plans to testify, defense attorney Robert Draskovich said Monday, and is expected to take the stand to wrap up his own defense, possibly Tuesday afternoon.
Gatus cited Las Vegas Review-Journal articles about Telles and the county office that German wrote, published in May and June 2022, about a district office in turmoil.
“They weren’t exactly flattering,” the detective noted.
At the same time, German and the articles were ridiculed in social media posts by Telles for allegedly misrepresenting his efforts to combat corruption within an “old guard” political and social network in the real estate sector.
Gatus testified that the gray sneaker with a Nike logo and four black spots on the sole was “identical” to a sneaker jurors had previously seen on neighbor’s security camera footage, which showed a figure in orange sneaking into a side yard of German’s home, where German was later found dead over Labor Day weekend in 2022.
Neither an orange shirt nor a murder weapon were introduced as evidence in the case. But one of those shoes, cut into pieces and stained with blood from an unknown source, was found in a plastic shopping bag in Telles’ home after his arrest.
The murder of the Germans September 2022at age 69, making him the only reporter killed in the U.S. among the 69 news media workers killed worldwide that year, the Committee for the Protection of Journalists. German spent 44 Years of Covering Las Vegas Mafiosi and government officials at the Las Vegas Sun and later at the rival Review-Journal.
About 10 of his family members and friends attended Telles’ trial each day but have not spoken publicly about the killing. They declined to comment as a group on Monday.
The jury last week heard from forensic scientists who testified that Telles’ DNA was found under German’s fingernails. They also saw security footage of the suspect driving through German’s neighborhood.
