Former Las Vegas police officer accused of paying, ‘grooming’ children for sex

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — A former Las Vegas police officer is accused of grooming several children and paying them to engage in numerous sex assaults, the 8 News Now Investigators have confirmed.

Harvey Velazquez, 31, faces 21 charges, including child abuse and luring a child to engage in a sex act, records said.

The Las Vegas Metro Police Department fired Velazquez, who was officially a police officer going through field training, on April 23, the day of his arrest, a department spokesperson said.

On April 1, a person called police about two children receiving “inappropriate text messages” from a phone number registered to Velazquez, documents said. The children’s ages are not provided in court documents although detectives indicated they were under 16.

While speaking with detectives, Velazquez admitted to speaking to the children “numerous times” and “explained that he knew talking to the females was wrong,” documents said. Police then obtained a warrant to search Velazquez’s phone, finding text messages “sexual in nature” where Velazquez allegedly “talked about exchanging money for sexual acts.”

Beginning in 2021, Velazquez allegedly exchanged nude photos and videos of himself – some taken at work – with at least one child while also sending her money through an application, documents said. Police allege in one case, Velazquez accepted an offer “to trade oral sex” for a vape pen, documents said.

In one message from February, Velazquez allegedly paid a child $250 and met her at an off-Strip hotel, documents said. In another incident, Velazquez reportedly told the child he needed to take her to purchase Plan B – an emergency contraceptive pill – so she would not get pregnant.

In all, police suspect Velazquez paid one child up to $800 “over the duration of (the) incidents,” police said.

Velazquez remained at the Clark County Detention Center on $275,000 bail as of Friday. Should he post dance, Velazquez will be required to wear an alcohol monitor and stay away from the children connected to the case. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for Aug. 27.

Velazquez’s arrest was not made public until the 8 News Now Investigators’ reporting. The age of consent in Nevada is 16.

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