The 5 best moments in week 1 of the Telles process

LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Week 1 in the Robert Telles murder trial ended Friday.

Telles is the former county public administrator accused of killing Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Jeff German in September 2022.

Here are some key moments from the first week.

1. Emotional testimony from Holly and Roy Bailey

Holly and Roy Bailey were the first two witnesses to testify in the trial of Robert Telles.

They were neighbors of Jeff German and had tears in their eyes as they remembered the moment they discovered German's body.

2. The disturbed faces of Robert Telles

During testimony by Clark County Coroner Stephanie Yagi, Telles made worried faces.

During Yagi's testimony, pictures of German's body taken during the autopsy were shown.

3. Real estate agents Zachary Schilling and Kristen Riffle testified they called the police

Schilling and Riffle worked with Telles when he served as public administrator, helping him sell estate homes to the public administrator's office.

They said pictures and videos of the suspect in German's murder released by police caught their attention, but after seeing the suspect's vehicle, they called police.

Robert Draskovich, Telles' attorney, argued that Schilling had been involved in disputes over commissions on houses, suggesting he may have had a bone to pick with Telles.

4. Roberta Lee-Kennett testifies

Lee-Kennett was a real estate coordinator in the public administrator's office and a former colleague of Telles. She has also been the subject of Jeff German's articles.

She testified that she learned of German's murder and texted Telles about it.

5. Detective Derek Jappe

Telles said he communicated with Det. Jappe because he was trying to uncover an alleged bribery scheme by a company called Compass Realty.

Jappe testified that he began the investigation and contacted Rita Reid and others in the Public Administration Office who said Telles had indeed received “bribes.”

Jappe told jurors that the investigation ultimately ended in February 2023 without any prosecution against Telles or Compass Realty.

But in September 2022, Telles was placed under surveillance as part of Jappe's investigation.

Jappe testified that he also obtained a search warrant to obtain Telles' phone records.

On the day German was killed, Telles was not under surveillance because he had been under surveillance the day before, according to Jappe.

“We don't want to monitor a person for several days in a row,” Jappe said in court. “We usually have the same cars, and if someone notices the same car or the same person several days in a row, they might become suspicious.”

But Jappe said Telles' phone records showed there were no outgoing messages between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. on the day German was killed.

Channel 13 has been in the courtroom for almost every development in the case since Telles' arrest. Jaewon Jung will continue to provide you with Live updates on the process when it starts again next week. In the meantime, there is more to discover at ktnv.com/tellesontrial.