A somber sequence of events unraveled as John Garcia, a 46-year-old man from North Las Vegas, was taken into custody after allegedly opening fire on his former co-workers. The incident occurred over a week after Garcia had been fired from his job at a construction site for an attack on the same individuals. As per the arrest report, Garcia is facing a litany of charges including five counts of assault with a deadly weapon, five counts of attempted murder with a deadly weapon, and two counts of possession of a gun by a prohibited person, according to 8 News Now.
The initial altercation leading to his termination happened on April 23, when Garcia's co-workers reported to police an encounter with him that turned hostile. Following a verbal threat and a physical fight where Garcia reportedly pulled a knife on his colleagues, he was let go from his position. The same day, he was involved in a hit-and-run crash. He proceeded to another job site where he made additional threats before being captured by police, as reported by FOX5 Vegas.
On May 2, over a week after being fired, Garcia supposedly returned to the initial construction site and began shooting at the employees present. The shooting, which was recorded by surveillance video, showed employees scattering as Garcia, in a dark-colored pickup truck, fired upon them. It was during this exchange that Garcia sustained a gunshot wound to the shoulder. He was later found in the truck with a can of Budweiser and an AR-15 rifle, according to 8 News Now.
Garcia told police he was distressed by his family's financial struggles, which he said were exacerbated by gambling and having his work hours cut. He also complained of being constantly "yapping all the time" by co-workers. His wife, in a statement obtained by 8 News Now, mentioned that Garcia was upset about losing his job and feeling mocked at work due to his skin complexion and inability to speak Spanish. Garcia expressed regret for the incident to the police, stating, "I messed up," as noted in the arrest report.
Held at the Clark County Detention Center, Garcia is set to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on May 20. He has a criminal history, being a two-time convicted felon out of Nevada with convictions dating back to 1995 and as recently as 2023 for burglary and attempting to own a firearm by a prohibited person, 8 News Now reported.
