Left inset: Rasham Sylvester (GoFundMe). Right inset: Alexian Rodriguez‑Navar in court (KTNV/YouTube). Background: The residence where Alexian Rodriguez‑Navar allegedly discharged fire on his neighbor, Rasham Sylvester, resulting in Sylvester’s death (KLAS/YouTube).
Two Nevada teenagers observed through a window that their father had returned home from work and were “waiting to hear the front door open” when he was shot dead in his driveway by his neighbor, according to police.
Rasham Sylvester, 42, of Las Vegas, was fatally shot on Tuesday afternoon, September 22, in front of a house on the 5700 block of East Pavot Court near East Sahara Avenue and Hollywood Boulevard, as reported by local law enforcement.
An arrest report obtained by the Las Vegas Review‑Journal states that Sylvester’s neighbor, Alexian Rodriguez‑Navar, 25, used a rifle to kill him while Sylvester’s two sons, aged 14 and 17, remained inside the home playing video games and awaiting his arrival.
“They noticed through a window that their father had arrived home,” the arrest report reads. “They were waiting to hear the front door open but suddenly heard gunshots. After the shooting, the juveniles looked outside and saw their neighbor ‘Alex’ holding a gun.”
One of the boys told investigators that Rodriguez‑Navar appeared to move toward their house after the shooting. The brothers immediately fled to a bedroom, locked the door, and remained inside until police located them.
The teenagers explained that they knew Rodriguez‑Navar because he had lived nearby for years and their parents occasionally conversed with him. Sylvester’s wife informed police that “there’s been multiple issues with them” regarding Rodriguez‑Navar and Sylvester, according to the arrest report.
Sylvester’s home surveillance system captured video of him walking up his driveway with a backpack and a set of keys in his hand before Rodriguez‑Navar allegedly opened fire. Sylvester attempted to enter the house when he was struck by gunfire and collapsed on his front porch.
Rodriguez‑Navar was allegedly recorded emerging from behind a vehicle and firing several additional rounds at Sylvester, striking him again, the arrest report notes. Sylvester died at the scene.
His wife was at work when she learned her husband had been shot; she called 911 while rushing home. She told the dispatcher that her two sons were inside the house and were “freaking out.”
“One is 17 and the other is 14,” she said. “They are in the house freaking out right now. They are there. I don’t know if they will answer.”
A witness reported seeing Rodriguez‑Navar carrying a rifle immediately after the shots were fired. He briefly walked away before returning to “look at the person he shot,” according to the arrest report.
Rodriguez‑Navar was arrested at the scene and faces charges of first‑degree murder, discharging a firearm into an occupied structure or vehicle, and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.
Rodriguez‑Navar holds a manslaughter conviction on his record and is barred from possessing firearms, police confirmed.
Court records reveal that Rodriguez‑Navar was arrested in 2016 at age 15 in connection with a deadly melee near the Hollywood Recreation Center, an incident that left a 15‑year‑old dead and four others injured.
He later pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit battery, battery, and voluntary manslaughter with use of a deadly weapon, receiving a sentence of two years’ imprisonment followed by five years’ probation in December 2016.
Rodriguez‑Navar was ordered held without bail.
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