Jeffrey Michael German (August 23, 1953 – September 3, 2022) was an American

investigative reporter Investigative journalism is a form of journalism in which reporters deeply investigate a single topic of interest, such as serious crimes, political corruption, or corporate wrongdoing. An investigative journalist may spend months or years res ...

. His journalistic career in Las Vegas spanned four decades. He wrote for the ''

Las Vegas Review-Journal The ''Las Vegas Review-Journal'' is a daily subscription newspaper published in Las Vegas, Nevada, since 1909. It is the largest circulating daily newspaper in Nevada and one of two daily newspapers in the Las Vegas area. The ''Review-Journal'' ...

'' and the ''

Las Vegas Sun The ''Las Vegas Sun'' is one of the Las Vegas Valley's two daily Subscription business model, subscription newspapers. It is owned by the Greenspun family and is affiliated with Greenspun Media Group. The paper published afternoons on weekdays ...

''. He was stabbed to death in 2022. Elected official Robert Telles, whom German had investigated and reported on, is accused of his murder.

Early life and education

German was a native of

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...

. He earned a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

from

Marquette University Marquette University () is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Established by the Society of Jesus as Marquette College on August 28, 1881, it was founded by John Henni, John Martin ...

. He began his journalistic career as an intern for the ''

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel The ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'' is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where it is the primary newspaper. It is also the largest newspaper in the state of Wisconsin, where it is widely distributed. It is currently o ...

''. He also worked with

Jim Romenesko Jim Romenesko (born September 16, 1953) is an American journalist in Evanston, Illinois. His eponymous blog provides daily news, commentary, and insider information about journalism and media. Romenesko also ran the blog ''Starbucks Gossip'', which ...

Career

German was a columnist and investigative reporter at the ''

'' for more than two decades, covering

organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

, government, politics, and courts. He covered the

MGM Grand fire The MGM Grand fire occurred on Friday, November 21, 1980 at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino (now Horseshoe Las Vegas), located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. The fire killed 85 people, most through smoke inhalation. The fire began fr ...

in 1980 and the early 2000s FBI investigation into bribes taken by Clark County commissioners (

Operation G-Sting Operation G-Sting, also called Strippergate, and referencing the G-String costume often worn by strippers and showgirls, was an FBI investigation into bribes and unreported campaign contributions taken by Clark County Commissioners in Clark County, ...

). In 2001, German wrote the

true crime True crime is a nonfiction literary, podcast, and film genre in which the author examines an actual crime and details the actions of real people associated with and affected by criminal events. The crimes most commonly include murder; about 40 per ...

book ''Murder in Sin City: The Death of a Las Vegas Casino Boss'', which told the story of the death of

Ted Binion Lonnie Theodore Binion (November 28, 1943 – September 17, 1998), or Ted Binion, was a wealthy American gambling executive and one of the sons of famed Las Vegas casino magnate Benny Binion, owner of Binion's Horseshoe. Ted Binion's death has be ...

, heir to the

Binion's Horseshoe Binion's Gambling Hall & Hotel, formerly Binion's Horseshoe, is a casino on Fremont Street along the Fremont Street Experience mall in Downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned by TLC Casino Enterprises. The casino is named for its founder, Benny ...

fortune. After being laid off by the ''Las Vegas Sun'' in 2009, German joined the ''

'' newspaper staff in 2010. In the aftermath of the

2017 Las Vegas shooting On October 1, 2017, Stephen Paddock, a 64-year-old man from Mesquite, Nevada, opened fire on the crowd attending the Route 91 Harvest music festival on the Las Vegas Strip in . From his 32nd-floor suites in the Mandalay Bay hotel, he fired ...

, German was the first to report that the shooter had initially fired at two nearby

jet fuel Jet fuel or aviation turbine fuel (ATF, also abbreviated avtur) is a type of aviation fuel designed for use in aircraft powered by gas-turbine engines. It is colorless to straw-colored in appearance. The most commonly used fuels for commercial a ...

tanks at the Las Vegas airport before turning his attention to the music festival site. With fellow reporter

Cathy Scott Cathleen "Cathy" Scott (born c. 1950) is a ''Los Angeles Times'' bestselling American true crime writer and investigative journalist who penned the biographies and true crime books ''The Killing of Tupac Shakur'' and ''The Murder of Biggie Small ...

, he broke the story of the 1997 murder of mafia associate bookmaker

Herbert Blitzstein Herbert "Fat Herbie" Blitzstein (November 2, 1934 – January 6, 1997) was a loanshark, bookmaker, racketeer and lieutenant to Tony "The Ant" Spilotro and the Chicago Outfit in Las Vegas, Nevada. Biography Born in a Jewish family in Chicago, B ...

. German was a writer and host for the podcast series ''Mobbed Up: The Fight for Las Vegas'' which was co-produced with the

Mob Museum The Mob Museum, officially the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, is a history museum located in Downtown Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Opened on February 14, 2012, the Mob Museum is dedicated to featuring the artifacts ...

. He also reported on failures in the city's inspections ahead of the fatal 2019 Alpine Motel Apartments fire and mismanagement, unlawful misconduct, and bullying in the office of the Clark County Public Administrator, Robert Telles.

Death

German was found stabbed to death outside his Las Vegas Valley home on September 4, 2022. He was 69 years old. The police reported that he had been involved in an altercation with somebody outside his house the day before he was found dead and that they had identified a suspect for his murder. On September 7, police arrested Clark County public administrator Robert Telles on suspicion of German's murder. Telles had lost his re-election bid in the Democratic primary after German published the results of an investigation into allegations that Telles was contributing to a

hostile work environment In United States labor law, a hostile work environment exists when one's behavior within a workplace creates an environment that is difficult or uncomfortable for another person to work in, due to illegal discrimination. Common complaints in sexua ...

and was involved in an inappropriate relationship with a staffer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:German, Jeff 1953 births 2022 deaths American newspaper reporters and correspondents American investigative journalists Murdered American journalists Journalists from Las Vegas American columnists American male journalists 20th-century American journalists 21st-century American journalists 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers Marquette University alumni People murdered in Nevada Deaths by stabbing in Nevada Date of birth missing Place of birth missing