On May 16, 2025, a mass shooting took place at the Las Vegas Athletic Club, a gym in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Two people were killed, including the shooter, and three others were wounded. The shooter was identified as 34-year-old Daniel Ortega, a former patron at the gym.
Shortly before entering the building, the gunman, Daniel Ortega, armed with an AR-15–style rifle and multiple magazines, was asked by a man walking with him into the gym if the gun he was holding was real which Ortega replied "No, it’s fake, but you should get out of here." which prompted the man to hide behind a pillar, believing something was wrong. He later stated that nobody was acting concerned about Ortega and the man thought Ortega was a police officer by the way he dressed.[1]
Ortega was then seen on CCTV footage entering the front entrance door of the gym at 1:33:14p.m.. He unharmed a man he crossed paths with who was exiting the gym as he walked out of frame of the CCTV camera. He approached the front desk, paced around briefly before exchanging words with employee Edgar Quinonez, shooting and killing him as he ran into the gym where he was seen dead next to a machine by a witness.[2] Ortega entered the gym and continued firing, injuring 3 patrons. After firing 24 rounds, the rifle malfunctioned which he was then seen on CCTV footage at 1:37p.m. walking back to the gym entrance door, throwing his car keys and wallet out his pocket and looking out the window of the gym entrance door. He waited around the entrance for 2 minutes before exiting the building at 1:39:58p.m. which he was then seen by officers stationed outside the building, whom shot Ortega as he ran out into the road. He was pronounced dead later that day in a hospital.[3][4]
Casualties
One male employee was discovered dead inside the gym, and four other people, all members of the gym, with gunshot wounds were hospitalized, one being reported by a witness as being struck in the back,[5] including the shooter who later died and a person in critical condition.[6][7] The deceased victim was identified as employee Edgar Quinonez who had worked at the gym for 15 years and was described as "a source of kindness, dedication and positivity".[3][8]
Perpetrator
The gunman was identified as 34-year-old Daniel Ortega (December 31, 1990 – May 16, 2025), a North Las Vegas, Nevada resident who was a member of the gym and a former Las Vegas Strip bellman. At the time of his death, Ortega was reported by Las Vegas Police to be 5'11" and 180lbs.[3][9]
According to North Las Vegas jail records, Ortega was previously accused of a DUI and trafficking of a controlled substance in 2013, and later served community service on the drug charge according to court records.[10]
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