Department of Justice
For Immediate Release
Man Sentenced to Prison for Possessing Firearm at a Casino When He Shot a Security Guard
LAS VEGAS – A Henderson resident was sentenced to 46 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for being a felon in possession of a firearm in 2021, during which he shot a security guard.
Michael Joseph Kasper (34) pleaded guilty in October 2022 to felon in possession of a firearm. He was sentenced by United States District Judge Cristina D. Silva on April 10, 2023.
According to court documents, on December 16, 2021, casino security guards believed Kasper had attempted to cash a fraudulent check at the casino cage. Security attempted to detain Kasper, but he resisted and immediately began fighting the security guards. During the scuffle, Kasper possessed a 9mm semi-automatic firearm and shot twice at and injured a security guard. Kasper has prior felony convictions in Clark County, and he is prohibited by law from possessing a firearm.
Kasper was charged in Clark County for the shooting of the security guard, and Kasper pleaded guilty to one count of battery with use of deadly weapon resulting in substantial bodily harm.
The 46-month sentence in this case was ordered to run consecutive to Kasper’s unrelated prior criminal conduct arising out of Lincoln County, Nevada, for three counts of battery by prisoner upon a first responder, in which was he was sentenced to 108 to 432 months in prison.
United States Attorney Jason M. Frierson for the District of Nevada and Acting Special Agent in Charge Joshua Jackson for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) made the announcement.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and ATF investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Bianca Pucci prosecuted the case.
If you have information about illegal firearms activity, submit a tip to ATF by calling the hotline at 1-800-ATF-GUNS (1-800-283-4867) or through the ReportIt mobile app.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime. For more information about PSN, visit www.justice.gov/usao-nv.