‘He’s like a loose cannon’: Family member describes suspect in shooting at Mirage hotel

LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) - We are learning new information about the man accused of shooting three family members inside of a hotel room at the Mirage Hotel & Casino Thursday night.

Billy Hemsley, the suspect, has a lengthy criminal record, including an attempted murder charge when he tried to kill his cousin, Acturius Dwayne Milner, 49. The victim who was killed on Thursday is that same cousin.

Niya Hughes shares a daughter, Auctavia Milner, 29, with Milner.

“That was his favorite cousin, and he had forgiven him for everything, and it literally cost him his life,” Hughes said.

She says her daughter is in critical condition and sustained several gunshot wounds to different parts of her body.

“Her main focus was fighting to get back to her family, she said that’s all she kept thinking about, mom I was so scared I didn’t think I would see you again, just needed to get back to my family and kept getting dark but I had to fight to get back to you guys and thankfully she did,” she said.

Milner had just started online classes and was set to start a new job next week. She had recently started spending more time with her father.

“They will never have an opportunity to finish what they started and that is not fair, for no reason, and how many lived are now affected because of one person’s wrong decision … affects how many families, how many lives,” she added.

She says Milner had a good heart and was a good person who tried to do the right thing and loved his children.

She added that Hemsley had mental health issues, and was like a loose cannon, they never knew what he was going to do.

Hemsley is scheduled for his first court appearance Saturday morning.

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