The video is chilling. James Edgar Lewis is sleeping under a Las Vegas freeway when a dark-colored SUV passes by. Seconds later, a man wearing a dark top emerges from the vehicle and shoots Lewis twice in the head before fleeing.
There is no struggle, no fight. Lewis never even appears to wake up.
“It’s basically an execution,” said Lt. Dan McGrath of Las Vegas Metropolitan Police.
Lewis was the latest of four homeless men who have been shot in Vegas in recent days. Two have died.
Three men were shot January 29 within about a seven-hour span. Lewis’ death came four days later on February 2, said Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Capt. Robert Plummer said.
The suspect has been identified as a white Hispanic man, about 6-feet-tall who is driving a silver or gray Hyundai SUV.
The first shooting occurred at 12:30 a.m. on January 29 when a man was shot outside of a convenience store in Logandale. The man survived, Plummer said.
Then, at 3:06 a.m., Brian Clegg was fatally shot while sleeping outside of a business on a busy street in Las Vegas. That was followed by another shooting in Las Vegas at 7:13 a.m., where a man woke up with a gunshot wound to the head. He survived, Plummer said.
‘Why would they do that to him?’
In addition, officers from the LVMPD Office of Community and Engagement are informing the city’s homeless population about the shootings.
“They’re letting them know that these events have taken place and encouraging them to utilize our homeless shelters,” Meltzer said.
A third homeless person was stabbed on January 28 but police said that victim had gotten in a physical altercation and they do not believe the case is related to the two shootings.
Meanwhile, Las Vegas residents are baffled by the shootings. Several of Lewis’ friends expressed grief over his death.
“Why would they do that to him? He was such a nice person,” friend Debbie Perez told CNN affiliate KSNV, fighting back tears.
Melissa Harris, who came with her children to place candles near the shooting scene, said Lewis, known as “Pops,” was a familiar sight around town, often riding his bicycle and collecting cans.
“He’d sleep here every night,” she told KSNV. “He never bothered anybody.”
CNN’s Amir Vera contributed to this report.