Posted on: September 4, 2024, 08:41h.
Last updated on: September 4, 2024, 08:43h.
A 26-year-old man set off a sprinkler system at the Fontainebleau Las Vegas hotel on Sunday by using what appeared to be a “flamethrower,” police said.
The suspect, Gavin Hamilton, 26, was quickly apprehended. He was booked on Monday at a jail for assault with a deadly weapon, arson, and drug possession charges, according to Las Vegas TV station KLAS.
Stairwell Confrontation
The puzzling incident began when Hamilton and hotel maintenance workers confronted each other in a hotel stairway.
When one of the workers came closer to Hamilton, he allegedly activated the sprinkler system with the flamethrower.
He lit an unspecified liquid substance and aimed it via a three-foot-long hose toward the workers, authorities said. He had carried the device in his backpack.
Fontainebleau Las Vegas employees alerted Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) officers about Hamilton’s threatening actions. Officers responded.
After his arrest, Hamilton told police the flamethrower was constructed out of bongs and a methamphetamine (meth) pipe, as well as butane. Butane is a flammable, easily-liquified gas.
For some reason, Hamilton had covered himself in an oily-type liquid, KLAS reported. He also had many tattoos on his body, based on his booking photograph.
It appears that no one was injured during the incident.
Many Questions
He also claimed to have been trying to escape from two people who he said were in the stairwell, police said.
No word if police ever confirmed there were two people threatening him or even why they were after him.
When speaking to LVMPD officers, Hamilton further claimed he activated the sprinkler system because he wanted open a stairwell door that was locked, police revealed. But the door failed to unlock with his actions, authorities added. It’s unclear why he needed to exit the stairwell.
KLAS reported that LVMPD officers responded with a “counterterrorism”-type response. But the report didn’t reveal how many police units responded to the incident and if responding officers included anti-terrorism units or a SWAT team.
Hamilton also allegedly failed to show up to local court earlier this week and remains in the Clark County Detention Center as of Wednesday. No explanation was given on why Hamilton didn’t appear in Las Vegas Justice Court.
Las Vegas Justice Court Judge Amy Ferriera set Hamilton’s bail at $34K. If he’s convicted on the charges, he could face a prison sentence.
The Fontainebleau Las Vegas is located on the north end of the Las Vegas Strip. Hamilton was a registered guest at the hotel.
