Now-retired Las Vegas sergeant accused of stealing money from massage parlors during raids - MSN

[David Charns]

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — A recently retired Las Vegas police sergeant allegedly stole cash while raiding massage parlors as part of the department’s investigations into prostitution and sex trafficking, the 8 News Now Investigators have learned.


Sgt. Sean Lucero, who retired from the department in August, faces charges of theft and oppression under color of office, records said. Lucero worked in Metro’s Vice Section, which focuses on sex-related crimes.

Metro police began their investigation into Lucero in March after a source suspected Lucero of stealing cash from massage parlors while on the job, documents said.

In one specific search of a spa in May, an employee claimed her wallet was missing after police froze it before obtaining a search warrant, documents said. In a similar case, a spa worker said a stack of money was missing before the authorized search. In both cases, employees at the businesses were charged with prostitution-related offenses.



Several other Metro employees told detectives Lucero “specifically showed a concerted interest in massage parlor operations and even rebuffed his detective’s efforts to conduct other types of enforcement on a more frequent basis,” documents said. Records showed Lucero’s squad searched 79 massage parlors over a one-year period, far exceeding the 17 searched over 17 months before Lucero transferred to the Vice section.

Police obtained Lucero’s bank records, which they said showed several ATM deposits on the day of or within a few days of a spa raid. Since transferring to Vice, Lucero moved more than $37,000 in cash to his accounts – “all of which there is probable cause to believe are proceeds from his criminal activities,” police said.

Detectives later put a tracker on Lucero’s take-home vehicle to watch his movements to ATMs, they said. When speaking with other massage parlor employees, police came to the conclusion that the workers knew money was stolen but feared reporting it.



In an interview with detectives in July, Lucero denied stealing any money. According to police, he later admitted to stealing from 10 to 12 massage parlors. When a detective asked if Lucero remembered any of the business names, Lucero reportedly answered: “To be honest with you… I’ve done so many. The [expletive] names, I don’t even know.”

A warrant was issued for Lucero’s arrest on Tuesday. Lucero’s attorney was scheduled to ask a judge Thursday if his client could receive a “walk-through,” meaning he would surrender to the Clark County Detention Center and be released.

Lucero’s attorney declined to comment on the case.

8 News Now Investigator David Charns can be reached at dcharns@8newsnow.com.

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