Authorities say the shooting at Elko Regional Airport left an 11-year-old boy dead and shut down air service as detectives worked to reconstruct what happened.
ELKO, Nev. — Police in northeastern Nevada are investigating a murder-suicide at Elko Regional Airport after authorities said a father shot his 11-year-old son inside the terminal Monday and then turned the gun on himself near the ticket counter.
Authorities identified the dead as Giovanni Perez, 37, and his son, Callan Perez, 11. Officers were sent to the airport shortly after 12:30 p.m. on April 13 after reports of an active shooter. The boy was found wounded in or near a restroom and was taken to Northeastern Nevada Regional Hospital, where he later died. The case rattled Elko, interrupted airport operations and left investigators sorting through what led to the violence in a public place.
Police said the first calls came in at about 12:38 p.m. Witnesses directed officers toward two scenes inside the airport: the ticket counter area, where Giovanni Perez was found dead from what investigators described as a self-inflicted gunshot wound, and the restroom area, where Callan Perez was found with multiple gunshot wounds. The airport was locked down as officers searched the building and secured the scene. In an initial public statement, police said the response began as an active-shooter call, but investigators later said the evidence pointed to a murder-suicide involving only the father and son.
As detectives released more information over the next two days, a broader picture began to emerge. Police said the pair had been traveling together after their vehicle broke down in Winnemucca and was towed to Elko. Investigators said they had been trying to continue on to Reno and had gone to the airport as part of those travel arrangements. Police said Giovanni Perez had claimed to suffer from PTSD related to his military service, and detectives were also examining a custody dispute involving Callan’s maternal grandparents. Authorities said they were still trying to determine motive and piece together the exact sequence of events inside the terminal before the shooting.
The case drew attention beyond Elko because it unfolded in a regional airport, a setting more often associated with travel delays than violent crime. For local officials, that meant managing both a homicide scene and the practical impact on flights and passengers. Airport operations were halted while officers checked the terminal, searched property tied to the investigation and cleared the area for any continuing threat. By the next day, officials said the airport would reopen and commercial service would resume, a sign that investigators no longer believed there was a broader danger to the public even as the criminal investigation continued.
Police have not announced any criminal charges because the suspected shooter is dead, but detectives said the investigative process remains active. That includes reviewing witness statements, physical evidence and travel records, as well as confirming the movements of the father and son before they reached Elko. Officials have also said they are examining the family and custody background described in later updates. The Elko Police Department has indicated that additional findings could be released once detectives complete more interviews and finish reviewing records connected to the trip, the airport timeline and the family dispute that investigators say preceded the shooting.
In a city where the airport is a small but important public gateway, the shooting left residents and workers confronting a sudden and deeply personal tragedy. Witnesses inside the terminal became part of the first response, directing officers toward the restroom and ticketing area. The public statements from police were brief and restrained, but the details carried the weight of a case involving a child killed in a place meant for routine departures and arrivals. Even after the terminal was cleared and flights prepared to resume, the investigation continued to cast a shadow over the airport and the community around it.
The case remains under investigation, with police still working to establish motive and a fuller timeline. The next milestone is any additional release from Elko police or the medical examiner as detectives complete interviews and review the evidence gathered from the airport and the family’s trip.
Author note: Last updated April 18, 2026.