Ex-Las Vegas Cop Wanted for Santa Fe Station Sex Assault Goes on Lam

Posted on: April 18, 2024, 06:37h. 

Last updated on: April 18, 2024, 09:55h.

Philip Conneller @casinoorgphilc Read More
Expertise: Gaming Business, Regulation, Tribal Gaming.

A now-fired Las Vegas police officer who allegedly threatened a woman with prison if she didn’t have sex with him has gone on the run.

Wendell Phillips, Clark County Park Police Department, arrest warrant
Wendell Phillips, above, had worked for the Clark County Park Police Department for only a few months when he was accused of threatening a woman with prison and coercing her into sex. (Image: LVMPD/KLAS)

Former Clark County Parks Police Officer Wendell Phillips was scheduled to appear in Clark County District Court on April 11 to face charges including sexual assault, but he didn’t show. A bench warrant has now been issued for his arrest.

Phillips was first arrested in mid-November and initially charged with oppression under color of office, misconduct of a public officer, and coercion with force or threat of force in connection to an incident that allegedly occurred in the parking lot of Santa Fe Station.

The later addition of the more serious category A felony sexual assault charge may have been what prompted Phillips to run.

‘You Belong to Me’

Phillips’ alleged victim told police she first encountered him in Sunset Park when she reported an incident to him that involved a shooting and domestic battery.

The officer drove the woman to the Santa Fe parking lot, telling her “You belong to me now, you don’t belong to the pimp anymore, you don’t [expletive] anybody, you don’t suck anybody unless I say so,” according to a police report filed to the court.

Phillips knew the woman had prior arrests for theft. He told her she could be sent to prison for three years for prostitution based on the information he had.

“The officer told her, the only way to save her life was to ‘shut up and [expletive] him,’” according to the report. They then had sex on the backseat of his vehicle, per court filings.

Arrested and Fired

Afterward, the pair went to a thrift store near the intersection of Cheyenne Avenue and Rancho Drive. The alleged victim was able to get away and flag down a passing Metro Police Officer.

Police identified Phillips using the store’s security video and questioned him at his home on October 7. He claimed he had merely given the woman a ride, but later admitted to having sex with her, according to documents. He was arrested on November 16.

Having joined the Clark County Park Police Department just months prior, Phillips was “released from employment” on the day of his arrest.