Las Vegas teens accused in intentional hit-and-run death of bicyclist plead not guilty
LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) - Two Las Vegas teens, who allegedly recorded the moment they targeted and fatally struck a bicyclist in a Las Vegas hit-and-run crash, appeared in court on Wednesday.
Jesus Ayala and Jzamir Keys, who were 17 and 16 at the time of the incident, both pleaded not guilty.
Both Ayala and Keys were indicted Friday and charged as adults with several felonies, including murder and auto theft.
Las Vegas police have said officers tied the teens to at least three hit-and-run incidents the morning of Aug. 14. Friday’s indictment expands on the charges the teens were already facing, AP reported.
The alleged hit-and-run incidents include the crash that killed cyclist Andreas “Andy” Probst, a 64-year-old retired former police chief from the city of Bell, California, who was pedaling along the side of a road when he was hit.
The video, which was shot from the front passenger seat of an allegedly stolen vehicle, shows the car approaching Probst from behind on an otherwise traffic-free road. AP reported that male voices can be heard laughing as the vehicle steers toward Probst and rams the bicycle. Probst is thrown backward across the hood and into the windshield. He is then seen on the ground next to the curb.
Along with murder and residential burglary, the teens were indicted on charges of battery, attempted murder and residential burglary, and multiple counts of automobile grand larceny and possession of a stolen vehicle.
The younger teen also was indicted on a charge of possessing burglary tools, according to AP.
Under Nevada law, the most severe sentence the teens could receive on the murder charge, if convicted, is 20 years to life in state prison, not the death penalty, according to AP. That’s because they were not 18 at the time they were accused of the crimes. One of them has since turned 18.
A status check for both Ayala and Keys was set for Oct. 24 at 9:30 a.m.
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