Christopher Tapp’s death being investigated as homicide
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LAS VEGAS — Christopher Tapp’s death is now being investigated as a homicide by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
The 47-year-old Idaho Falls man, who served 20 years in prison for crimes he did not commit, died Nov. 5 at a Nevada hospital.
Medical personnel were called to a hotel on the 3000 Block of South Las Vegas Boulevard on Oct. 29, where Tapp reportedly suffered head injuries in an accident.
Nearly a month later, on Nov. 22, the Las Vegas Metro Homicide Section began investigating Tapp’s “suspicious” death, according to a news release from the department.
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“Through the course of the suspicious death investigation, LVMPD Homicide Detectives have learned Tapp was in an altercation inside a room at a resort before being located and transported to the hospital,” the release says.
Tapp’s death has been ruled a homicide as a result of blunt force trauma to the head, the Clark County Coroner’s Office said.
Police have not released any information about possible suspects or what information they received to begin the homicide investigation.
Tapp was wrongfully convicted in 1997 for the rape and murder of 18-year-old Angie Dodge in Idaho Falls. His DNA did not match the DNA at the crime scene, and he tried multiple times to appeal the conviction. Tapp was released from prison in 2017 and exonerated in 2019, when investigators arrested 54-year-old Brian Dripps. Dripps, who said he acted alone, pleaded guilty and is serving a 20-year-to-life prison sentence.
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Tapp was awarded $11.7 million in 2022 after suing the city of Idaho Falls and the Idaho Falls Police Department for the wrongful conviction. He and his mother, Vera Tapp, received an apology from Mayor Rebecca Casper and a promise that the city would do better moving forward.
Anyone with information about Tapp’s death is asked to contact Las Vegas Metro Police at (702) 828-3521, or by email at homicide@lvmpd.com. Tipsters can remain anonymous by contacting Crime Stoppers at (702) 385-5555 or at www.crimestoppersofnv.com.