3 charged with murder for Las Vegas Strip hotel room death
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Three people face second-degree murder charges for a man’s overdose death inside a Las Vegas hotel room involving a sex worker, the 8 News Now Investigators have learned.
On Thursday, April 25, Las Vegas Metro police arrested Mandy Wimberly, 27, at the Regional Justice Center before a sentencing in an unrelated drug case, records said. Two other people: Stephanie Ward, 41; and Daniel Christopher, 33, also face charges connected to the overdose death of Alfred Davtyan, 41.
Davtyan, of Glendale, California, died on March 8, 2023, from acute fentanyl and cocaine toxicity, according to the Clark County coroner’s office.
On the night of March 7, hotel security at The Cosmopolitan found Davtyan unresponsive in a hotel room, documents said. Las Vegas Metro police officers responded, finding “white powdery substance residue on the dining room table, which they believed to be cocaine as well as a clear vile with an unknown white powdery substance inside, which was found next to Davtyan’s body on the floor,” documents said.
The substance later tested positive for fentanyl, police said. Illicit fentanyl is 50-to-100 times more potent than morphine.
Video surveillance police obtained showed Davtyan on the casino floor on March 7, police said. In the video, Davtyan is playing slots when a woman approaches him. The pair then walks to his hotel room.
About an hour later, other cameras captured the woman leaving the room “in an obvious hurry,” documents said.
A reverse-image search “located several prostitution advertisements” with the same woman, police said. Police later identified the woman as Ward. Police found more video, which showed Davtyan and Ward together on March 6 and then Davtyan, Ward and two more people together on March 7, they said. Police later identified the two people as Christopher and Wimberly.
Police arrested Ward on March 25, 2023, documents said. Ward had a probation violation at the time, police said. Ward told police she met Davtyan for sex work. She also told police she purchased drugs from Christopher and Wimberly.
Facebook messages between Ward and Christopher allegedly showed Ward asking the couple for cocaine on March 6. In the conversation, detectives believe Ward and Christopher conspired to gain access to Davtyan’s hotel room and steal some of his belongings and his rental car. In other messages, Christopher allegedly connected with other people about selling fentanyl.
In July 2023, Metro police arrested Christopher and Wimberly on other drug-related charges, police said. In February, police arrested Christopher again on a fentanyl trafficking charge.
Ward faces charges of second-degree murder, theft and two drug-related charges, records said. A judge denied setting bail.
Christopher and Wimberly face second-degree murder and drug-related charges. A judge denied setting bail for both.
A preliminary hearing was scheduled for May 7. Booking photos for Ward and Christopher were not immediately available.
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