By james art
Posted: October 29, 2024, 1:55 am
Last updated on: October 29, 2024, 1:56 a.m.
A Las Vegas jury found Julius Trotter guilty Tuesday of killing two Vietnamese tour leaders in a Circus Circus hotel room six years ago. He could get the death sentence.
Sang Boi Nghia and Khuong Ba Le Nguyen were found stabbed to death in their hotel room at a north Las Vegas Strip hotel on June 1, 2018. After being identified as a suspect on casino security video, Trotter was arrested days later in Chino, California following a police chase.
Trotter was spotted in a hotel elevator around 4 a.m., near the time the Vietnamese nationals were killed. About 45 minutes later, he was seen on video returning to his own hotel room at Circus Circus with his shirt inside out. He quickly left the room even though he had booked an extra night.
Neck pusher
Prosecutors believe the suspect was “pushing the door,” which refers to the practice of criminals prowling hotel hallways checking for unlocked doors. The latch on the door to Nghia and Nguyen’s room was broken, meaning it did not close properly.
The incident raised questions about security at Las Vegas hotels. While casino floors are the most closely watched places on earth, less attention is paid to hotel hallways.
like Casino.org it was noted at the time that it was easier to be a door pusher than a card counter in Las Vegas. Police said after Trotter’s arrest that door slamming was “not uncommon” in the city.
After Trotter left Circus Circus, he was seen on surveillance footage depositing cash at an ATM before checking into the Palms to gamble.
When police arrested him, they found items belonging to the victims in his car and home, including a backpack, purse and watch.
Sneaker mystery
They also found traces of Nghia and Nguyen’s blood on a pair of sneakers that also contained Trotter’s DNA. They were the same type of shoes the suspect was seen wearing on surveillance video the night of the crime.
Last week, Trotter told jurors he took the elevator to the victim’s hotel tower because he had arranged to visit a sex worker there.
He testified that he received the victims’ stolen property from a friend who fenced the stolen property. That person also gave him the bloody shoes because Trotter was known to buy and sell sneakers, the defendant claimed.
But in the end, for the jury, the sneakers were number 11 and a half. Trotter wears a size 13.
Jurors will now decide whether the 37-year-old should be executed for the crime.