Police say an arrest warrant has been issued for a suspect in the fatal workplace shooting.
LAS VEGAS, NV — The family of 31-year-old Brandan Lucas is mourning after police say he was shot and killed Wednesday afternoon while working at a Five Below store in northwest Las Vegas.
Lucas was killed inside the store at the Best in the West shopping center near North Rainbow Boulevard and West Lake Mead Boulevard. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police said the shooting happened just after 4:30 p.m. June 17 and began when a man entered the business asking for a specific employee. Court records later identified the suspect as David Nathaniel Vasquez, who had not been reported in custody in the latest local accounts.
Police said several 911 calls came in after gunfire inside the store. Officers found Lucas with gunshot wounds, and medical crews pronounced him dead at the scene. Investigators said the suspect walked through the front door, asked for Lucas and got into a physical fight with him before pulling a gun and firing. Lt. Robert Price said the suspect fled before officers arrived. Police described the shooting as isolated and said there was no continuing threat to the public.
Lucas’ cousin, Shekiera Wright, said the family first struggled to believe he had died. “Like even when I first got the call, I was just like, ‘OK, OK, well he’s gonna be fine,’” Wright said. She said relatives waited for hours while trying to learn what had happened. The family said Lucas had been at work when the man came in looking for him by name. Wright said the loss was hard to understand because Lucas had been doing what he did on a normal day.
Police have not publicly confirmed a motive. Family members told local reporters they believe the confrontation may have been tied to a personal dispute involving text messages, but investigators have not released a final account of what led up to the shooting. News 3 reported that sources said the suspected shooter came to the store because of messages allegedly sent by Lucas to the suspect’s girlfriend, who worked at the store. Police have only said the man entered the business seeking a specific employee before the fight and shooting.
Five Below said in a statement that it was focused on supporting employees after the killing. The company said there is “nothing more important than the safety” of crew members and customers and said it was heartbroken by the loss of life. The company also said it was cooperating with law enforcement and would reopen the Las Vegas location when appropriate. Store listings showed the location closed after the shooting, with normal hours expected to resume later in the week.
The shooting also renewed concern in the Las Vegas area about violence at workplaces where employees serve the public. News 3 noted that the killing came after another workplace attack last year, when a gunman opened fire inside a Las Vegas Athletic Club, killing employee Edgar Quinonez and wounding three others before police shot and killed the gunman. The Five Below shooting happened in a busy retail center with several stores near two major northwest valley roads.
Court records show a warrant was issued June 18 for Vasquez. He faces several felony counts, including open murder with the use of a deadly weapon, discharging a gun within a structure or vehicle in a prohibited area and carrying a concealed firearm or dangerous weapon without a permit. Police initially described the suspect as a Hispanic man in his 20s. Detectives continued working to locate him and gather evidence from the store, the shopping center and possible witnesses.
Wright said the family is left with grief and questions about how someone was able to come into the store, find Lucas and kill him. “It shouldn’t have been that easy,” she said. She said no family should have to face that kind of loss. “The violence has to stop,” Wright said. “These are people’s lives that are being affected. Our lives are never going to be the same.”
The investigation remained active as of Sunday, June 21, with an arrest warrant issued and police still seeking the suspect in the fatal shooting. The next major step is the suspect’s arrest and first court appearance if he is taken into custody.
Author note: Last updated June 21, 2026.