CNN
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Late last week, Robert Telles, the former Nevada politician accused of killing a Las Vegas investigative journalist, took the stand and claimed he was involved in a vast conspiracy.
He claimed that the real estate company Compass Realty, his office colleagues, the Las Vegas Police Department, the DNA lab and prosecutors conspired to hire a hitman and kill reporter Jeff German on September 2, 2022, and then falsify evidence to make him look guilty.
But in his counterargument for the prosecution on Monday, Christopher Hamner derided the conspiracy, bluntly telling the jury: “It didn't make any sense.”
“It gives you a glimpse into his mind. That's how important Mr. Telles sees himself. That every single one of these people, these beings, was literally willing to kill another human being – who is not him – just to pin the blame on him,” Hamner said. “Does that make sense? And more importantly, where is the evidence?”
Even Telles' own attorney, Robert Draskovich, did not fully support Telles' conspiracy theory, although he was sympathetic to his client's thinking.
“It's understandable why he believes in this far-reaching conspiracy,” Draskovich said in his closing argument. “What other options does he have under these circumstances?”
Following the rebuttal, the jury was sent to deliberate. After a roughly four-hour session, the jury was sent home for the day and will return at 9 a.m. PT on Tuesday.
The closing arguments and rebuttals come several weeks after the start of the murder trial of Telles, the 47-year-old former Clark County public administrator, who has pleaded not guilty to using a deadly weapon in the killing of German, a reporter for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
The trial in Clark County comes nearly two years after the murder and highlights concerns that violence against journalists still exists even in the United States. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, 14 journalists have been killed in the United States since 1992.
German, 69, wrote about the dark side of Sin City and covered gangsters, corrupt officials and corrupt government agencies during his life. But prosecutors said it was his research into Telles and his little-known office that led to the murder.
Before his death, German had written about allegations of misconduct in the Clark County Public Administrator's office, saying Telles had created a hostile work environment and had an inappropriate relationship with a co-worker.
The reporter was found dead with multiple stab wounds outside his home on September 2, 2022. According to the Review-Journal, he was working on a story about Telles the week he was killed.
What happened during the hearing and in the closing submissions?
Over the past two weeks, prosecutors have alleged that Telles killed German because he was angry that the reporter had written articles exposing the unrest in his political office. Those articles, according to prosecutors, caused Telles to lose his bid for re-election in a June 2022 Democratic primary.
Months later, as German was working on another story about him, Telles disguised himself and hid outside the reporter's house and stabbed him to death, according to the indictment.
About two dozen witnesses testified for the prosecution, which used video and physical evidence to link Telles to the suspect's disguise, a maroon vehicle at the crime scene and DNA found under German's fingernails.
Pieces of the disguise – a large sun hat and gray Nike sneakers – were found cut into pieces in Telles' home, prosecutors said. Investigators also examined Telles' phone and found images of German's house from Google Maps, prosecutors said.
In closing arguments Monday, Assistant District Attorney Pamela Weckerly summarized the evidence and showed Telles' texts criticizing German's article.
“He was obviously incredibly upset that these articles were written and that they led to him losing the primary,” Weckerly said.
The defense said Telles was framed for the murder because he wanted to use his political office to push through changes that angered the “old guard.” Telles testified in his own defense during the trial and denied any wrongdoing. He said a real estate company hired a hitman to kill the reporter and then pinned the blame on him.
“I never beat anyone, I never killed anyone. I did not kill Mr. German. That is my statement,” Telles said.
In the defense's closing argument Monday, Draskovich argued that the state had not proven the case beyond a reasonable doubt. Prosecutors had not found German's blood or DNA in Telles' home, vehicle or on his clothing, and investigators had not found the murder weapon or the bright orange vest the suspect was wearing, he argued.
In his rebuttal, Hamner ruthlessly dismantled Telles' conspiracy theory, saying it was illogical that so many people would agree to kill a reporter in order to pin the blame on a minor politician.
Hamner reluctantly acknowledged that Telles' murder plan was “thought-out” and “premeditated,” but said it was amateurish overall. And he argued that Telles had the motive and means to kill German, who was working on another article about him.
“He murdered him because Jeff's writing destroyed his career, ruined his reputation, probably threatened his marriage and brought to light things that he himself admitted he did not want the public to know,” he said. “He did it because Jeff wasn't finished writing.”
CNN's Cindy Von Quednow contributed to this report.
