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Jeff German: the reporter's killer was the official
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An elected official murdered the investigative reporter who exposed him — to kill the story. It didn't work.
In 2022, Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Jeff German, 69, was stabbed to death outside his home. His reporting had exposed turmoil in the county office of Robert Telles, an elected official who lost his primary and publicly blamed German. German fought back: DNA under his fingernails matched Telles. LVMPD surveillance caught a figure in a straw hat and orange jacket near German's home; a cut-up hat and shoes were later found in Telles's home. Telles claimed he was framed. In 2024 a jury convicted him of first-degree murder; he was sentenced to 28 years to life.
The story beneath the surface: killing the reporter didn't kill the story. Police seized German's devices — and his newspaper fought all the way to the Nevada Supreme Court to protect his confidential sources even after his death, then finished the reporting he'd been working on when he died.
Real media — the Nevada DOC booking photo and LVMPD-released surveillance — is sourced and credited on screen. Facts: AP/CBS/ABC/CNN/NBC News; Las Vegas Review-Journal; KTNV; court record.
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