NV.gov
Major Crime Investigations
The Major Crimes Unit (MCU) has personnel assigned in Carson City and Las Vegas. While the investigations which the Major Crimes Unit conducts can vary significantly, the most frequent types of investigations requested include the following:
- Homicide
- Officer Involved Shooting
- In-custody Death
- Fraud/Embezzlement
- Child Abuse and Sexual Crimes Against Children
- Threats Against Public Officials
- Administrative Investigations
- Other types of felony investigations
The Major Crimes Unit further serves as an independent review for those agencies in need of a third-party examination where the accused are:
- Peace officers, such as with officer involved shootings,
- Elected or governmental officials,
- Individuals related to an elected official or individuals with some type of governmental authority.
In addition, the Major Crimes Unit has three polygraphers who conduct polygraph examinations for criminal investigations, the monitoring of post-conviction sex offenders, and pre-employment screening. The Major Crimes Unit receives investigative referrals and requests from other law enforcement agencies due to the complexity of the crimes, the need for investigative expertise, and/or the extensive time and resource comittment.
In many of the rural areas of Nevada, the Major Crimes Unit provides a necessary mechanism to handle those types of investigations where smaller law enforcement agencies do not have the manpower, investigative resources, or political separation to conduct sensitive or complex investigations.