Former Las Vegas-area police officer missing after indictment on sex charge
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — A former Clark County Park Police officer, who allegedly threatened a woman that she could go to prison if he did not have sex with her in a casino parking garage, is missing.
In March, a Clark County grand jury indicted Wendell Phillips on charges of oppression under color of office, misconduct of a public officer and sexual assault, documents said. Phillips originally faced a charge of coercion with force or threat of force.
Before the indictment, police arrested Phillips on three charges. With help from a bail bonds company, he posted $50,000 bail on Nov. 20 and was released with an ankle-monitoring bracelet, records said. In January, a Las Vegas Justice Court pro temp judge granted Phillip’s request to remove the monitoring bracelet.
Phillips failed to appear for his April 4 initial arraignment in district court following his grand jury indictment. His attorney cited a COVID diagnosis for the absence. A week later, Judge Michelle Leavitt ordered a bench warrant for Phillips’ arrest as he failed to appear for the continued hearing, records said.
In October, a woman reported to Metro police that a man “who said he was a state trooper” dropped her off and told her “he was going to get [her] a job and a place to live if [she] had sex with him.” The woman said she met the officer, later identified as Phillips, at Sunset Park. Metro police identified Phillips as a Clark County Park Police officer.
“She believed they drove around the park for 15 minutes before driving to a ‘dune’ area of the park, which she described as being secluded,” investigators said. “Once there, the officer parked the vehicle and opened the rear passenger door and began unzipping his pants.”
Philipps then allegedly stopped to speak with a detective, and ordered the woman out of the car and to remain in a different area of the park, documents said.
“The officer came back to pick her up in what she believed was his personal vehicle, described as a white Ford F-150, with a small cab,” documents said. “She approximated the year of the F-150 as 2009. She stated he was now wearing a green hat, a T-shirt, and blue jeans.”
They then drove to Sante Fe Station, police said.
“While driving to the Sante Fe Station, the officer told her, ‘You belong to me now, you don’t belong to the pimp anymore, you don’t [expletive] anybody, you don’t suck anybody unless I say so,’” documents said.
Phillips also allegedly told the woman he could get her a job and provide her food and housing, Metro police said. The woman told police the man took a picture of her identification and told her she could do three years in prison for prostitution and theft, documents said.
“The officer knew she had prior arrests for stealing, so the officer told she could go to prison for three years with the information he had,” police said.
The two then allegedly had sex in the casino’s garage, police said.
“The officer told her, the only way to save her life was to ‘shut up and [expletive] him,’” documents said. “She stated they had sex in the backseat of his vehicle.”
After they left the casino, the woman and Phillips walked around a thrift store near where the woman flagged down the Metro officer. The two had a disagreement and she left the store to get help, police said.
Metro police tracked Phillips down with surveillance from the store, they said. Police detained Phillips at his home on Oct. 7, documents said.
In an interview with police, Phillips reportedly said he met the woman at the park and offered her help. Phillips told police the woman pleaded for him to give her a ride. Phillips then admitted to penetrating the woman, documents said.
Metro police arrested Phillips on Nov. 16. During a hearing the next day, Judge Daniel Westmeyer set bail at $50,000.
Clark County’s Office of Public Safety hired Phillips in 2023, records said. He was “released from employment” on Nov. 16, the day of his arrest, a county spokesperson said.
As of Tuesday, Phillips was not in custody at the Clark County Detention Center.
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