Woman reports stranger with sledgehammer to 911 — then screams, Las Vegas cops say

A woman washing her clothes alone inside a Las Vegas laundromat called 911 at 5 a.m. Thursday to report a stranger outside carrying a sledgehammer, KTNV reported.

Then she began screaming and the line went dead, KVVU reported. Police responding to the 911 call found her dead outside the laundromat’s front doors

“At this point we believe it was random from listening to the 911 call,” said Lt. Ray Spencer, The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported. “It doesn’t appear like she knows him.”

Officers detained a bloody man found carrying a sledgehammer a quarter-mile away, KVVU reported. After questioning him, police arrested Clinton Taylor, 38, on suspicion of murder, according to the station.

Spencer, who called it “definitely a disturbing crime,” said the laundromat had opened at 4:30 a.m. but no employees were on duty at the time, The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.

The slain woman’s identity will be released once her family has been notified, KTNV reported.

“Oh, it’s terrible,” said Katherine Ferguson, who owns the shopping center where the attack took place, The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.

The laundromat is near Washington Avenue and Rancho Drive, KTNV reported.

This story was originally published August 29, 2019 at 1:55 PM with the headline "Woman reports stranger with sledgehammer to 911 — then screams, Las Vegas cops say."