LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — A decide sentenced a former Metro police sergeant to a minimum of 4 years in jail Monday for orchestrating phony arrests, which primarily focused males of shade.
In Might, Sgt. Kevin Menon pleaded responsible to eight counts after a grand jury indicted him in three separate instances. The costs embody oppression below the colour of workplace with speedy risk or use of bodily pressure, subornation of perjury, and capturing the picture of the non-public space of one other particular person.
Menon agreed to serve 4-10 years in jail as a part of the plea settlement. He may even should register as a intercourse offender upon his launch.
“I am not the man these charges reflect,” Menon stated in courtroom as Clark County District Courtroom Choose Ron Israel sentenced him. “For any harm I have done, I beg for forgiveness.”
Israel sentenced Menon to 4-10 years as per the plea, questioning why Menon accepted the plea if he maintained his innocence. The plea deal drastically lowered the period of time Menon might have spent in jail if the case had gone to trial and a jury had convicted him.
Since his arrest final yr, which in the end culminated in additional than 50 costs, Menon has been out and in of jail. A decide just lately elevated his bail to $1 million, although Menon was allowed to await sentencing on home arrest.
Within the first case, a grand jury indicted Menon for unlawful stops and searches of primarily Black males on the Las Vegas Strip whereas Menon labored as a sergeant in plain garments. Metro investigators stated Menon instigated conditions with the general public with out possible trigger. In a single case, Menon ordered the search of a automotive with none purpose, police stated. In one other, the sergeant, who typically labored in a plain garments capability, deliberately collided with an individual on a pedestrian bridge, resulting in that man’s arrest.
After a search of Menon’s dwelling associated to the primary case, police stated they discovered quite a few photographs of kid sexual abuse materials on Menon’s gadgets. This resulted within the second case.
Police returned to Menon’s dwelling, the place they discovered hidden cameras that Menon put in in a toilet to report members of the family utilizing the bathroom. This resulted within the third prison case.
Robert Draskovich, Menon’s protection lawyer, submitted paperwork from the police division displaying that supervisors acknowledged him for good police work, together with discovering a lacking teen, arresting gang members and sustaining his calm throughout tense conditions.
Video proven to the grand jury in Menon’s first case reveals Menon directing a group of officers to focus on people, pulling maneuvers comparable to a “shoulder check” to agitate the goal after which arrest him.
Menon’s spouse and sister-in-law, recognized as victims in his third prison case, have stayed by his aspect by varied courtroom appearances. Each spoke on the sentencing and maintained Menon’s innocence.
“I was never asked if I was a victim, I was told I was a victim,” Natasha Menon, Kevin Menon’s spouse, stated. “I am not a victim of my husband. I am a victim of the Las Vegas Metro Police Department.”
After his preliminary arrest, the division positioned Menon on depart with pay and suspended his police powers pending an investigation. The division later stopped paying him. Menon “separated” from Metro in June, a spokesperson stated.
Menon tried to have Israel faraway from the case, citing allegations of abuse from his grownup daughter. Israel issued a response stating he ought to stay on the case, however couldn’t focus on sure points about his daughter resulting from HIPAA. Clark County District Courtroom Chief Choose Jerry Wiese determined Israel ought to stay on the case.
Menon shall be eligible for parole in 2029.
