A man accused of fatally stabbing 48-year-old Jamaal Gaither outside the Cork and Thorn bar in the Arts District has been extradited from Texas to face charges in Nevada. Clark County Detention Center records show Hyland Harper, 40, was booked Thursday on a warrant charging him with murder and battery with use of a deadly weapon. He is scheduled to appear in Las Vegas Justice Court on Saturday morning.
Metropolitan Police identified Harper as the man depicted on surveillance video killing Gaither in the early morning hours of Sept. 26. According to an arrest report, Harper and Gaither quarreled inside the bar at 70 W. Imperial Ave., with one witness telling police the dispute appeared to be over reserved seating. A security worker quoted Harper as saying, "I need to beat this guy. He disrespected me."
Harper was kicked out of the bar, but police said video surveillance showed Gaither exiting at 2:49 a.m. when he was approached by Harper and another man. Police said Harper pulled a folding knife from his back pocket as Gaither punched Harper's acquaintance. "Hyland stepped up to Jamaal and stabbed him once in the neck causing Jamaal to immediately fall to the ground," police said. "As Jamaal was falling, Hyland tried to stab Jamaal a second time."
While Gaither was on the ground, Harper's acquaintance kicked the victim in the head, according to police. Gaither was rushed to University Medical Center, where he died. Police identified Harper as a suspect in part because he had scanned his identification at the bar before entering. He was later arrested in the Dallas area.
Sources: Las Vegas Review-Journal
Original reporting: Las Vegas Review-Journal →
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