A former security officer testified about the chaotic scene moments after the 1996 shooting of rapper Tupac Shakur in Las Vegas, describing hearing multiple volleys of gunfire and seeing a young man holding a pistol.
Witness Heard Gunfire and Saw Vehicles
William Heidmeyer, a former security officer at the Maxim Hotel and Casino, now the Westin, was working with Las Vegas police officers investigating vehicle thefts on the third floor of a parking garage when the shooting occurred. He told the court that he and the officers suddenly heard gunfire and ran to a barrier wall overlooking Koval and Flamingo streets.
Heidmeyer testified that he heard “three volleys” of gunfire, with “three to four, maybe even five” shots in each volley. Looking down at the street, he saw a line of vehicles heading east on Flamingo, including a white Dodge Stratus at the front, a black BMW behind it, a white Chevy Suburban behind that, and several more cars.
Man with Pistol Described
Several people were standing outside the vehicles. Heidmeyer said he saw a Black man visibly holding a pistol. “He wasn’t pointing it in any direction, it was just off to the side,” he testified. The man was described as “very young, well dressed,” wearing a bright white three-quarter-sleeved shirt, black pants, and a black dress vest.
At the time, Heidmeyer concluded that the man with the gun was the suspect in the shooting. “That’s what I deduced at the time,” he said. Everyone on the street quickly got back into their cars and headed toward Las Vegas Boulevard, he added.
