Former Las Vegas-area official sentenced in murder of journalist

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Robert Telles, a former Clark County Public Administrator, was sentenced Wednesday for the murder of Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Jeff German on Labor Day weekend in 2022.

Telles, 47, was accused of plotting to kill German, 69, after the reporter wrote articles critical of Telles' conduct in office two years ago and exposed an intimate relationship with a female coworker. Telles allegedly believed the articles cost him his primary for a second term in office in 2022.

Telles was found guilty of first-degree murder in August and the jury sentenced him to 20 years to life. Wednesday, Judge Michelle Leavitt sentenced him on two enhancements, one for the weapon and the other because German was over 60 years old. The judge gave him an additional 8 to 20 years. Telles did get credit for the two years already spent behind bars. The earliest he could be released for parole is in 26 years.

German was a respected investigative reporter covering the Las Vegas community for more than 40 years and eventually encouraged his other family members to settle there. His brother, Jay German, addressed the court and talked about the toll his brother's killing had taken on the family.

German said his family has dealt with anxiety and fear since the murder.

Evidence against Telles was strong, including his DNA beneath German's fingernails.

Police sought public help to identify a person captured on neighborhood security video driving a maroon SUV and walking while wearing a broad straw hat that hid his face and an oversized orange long-sleeve shirt. Prosecutor Pamela Weckerly showed footage of the person wearing orange slipping into the side yard where German was stabbed, slashed and left dead.

At Telles’ house, police found a maroon SUV and cut-up pieces of a straw hat and a gray athletic shoe that looked like those worn by the person seen on the neighborhood video. Authorities did not find the orange long-sleeve shirt or a murder weapon.

At the time, Telles was the elected administrator of a county office that handles unclaimed estate and probate property cases. He has been jailed without bail since his arrest several days after the attack.

During the sentencing, Telles addressed the court and German's family, offering his condolences but still claiming his innocence.

“I am not the kind of person who would stab someone. I didn’t kill Mr. German,” Telles said. “And that’s my testimony.”

The jury deliberated nearly 12 hours over three days before finding Telles guilty. The panel heard pained sentencing hearing testimony from German's brother and two sisters, along with emotional pleas for leniency from Telles’ wife, ex-wife and mother, before deciding that Telles could be eligible for parole.

Clark County District Court Judge Michelle Leavitt was able to add up to eight years to Telles' sentence for using a deadly weapon in a willful, deliberate, premeditated killing; because German was older than 60 years old; and for lying in wait before the attack.

District Attorney Steve Wolfson said he was “hopeful and confident” the judge would impose a sentence that could keep Telles behind bars for the rest of his life.

“This defendant has shown absolutely no remorse, no acceptance of responsibility," said the Democratic-elected regional prosecutor. "And in fact, his behavior is such that I believe he is an extreme danger to the community if he is ever released.”

Telles' defense attorney, Robert Draskovich said Telles plans to appeal his conviction.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.