A Las Vegas YouTuber shot and killed a rival streamer and his wife Sunday on a busy sidewalk on the Strip — and the murder was livestreamed.
Manuel Ruiz, aged 41, is facing charges on two counts of murder, asserting to law enforcement that he acted in self-defense when he shot 44-year-old Rodney Finley and 43-year-old Tanisha Finley. According to KLAS reports, Ruiz believed they intended to shoot him, although the police confirmed the Finleys were unarmed.
After the incident, Ruiz left the scene, discarding his shirt, hat, and weapon before using a rideshare for a short distance. Lacking funds to pay for the ride, he continued on foot to a friend’s residence.
Ruiz explained to police that Tanisha Finley confronted him on the street, “dancing in his face,” and that Rodney Finley made a motion towards his waistband while saying “What up cuz?” in an aggressive manner, prompting him to think he was about to be shot. Ruiz claimed he targeted Finley’s torso initially, but aimed higher as Finley continued to move. He also stated he shot Tanisha Finley upon noticing a “shiny black object” in her hand. It resulted in both Finleys being shot in the head.
According to the arrest report, another YouTuber told police that Ruiz and Rodney Finley had been engaged in a feud since 2023 and that he saw the shooting on Ruiz’s livestream. He said he saw “Manny pull a gun from his front waistband and point it toard where he believed Finny was standing … saw the muzzle flash on video and heard five to six gunshots.”
Then, he said, he saw Tanisha Finley grab the gimbal holding the phone for the livestream and heard two more gunshots, and the phone fell to the ground, the arrest report said.
Two police officers patrolling the strip heard the gunfire and responded to the scene in front of the Bellagio fountains. As they arrived, Ruiz’s wife, Juliana Pimental, approached them and said she believed her husband had shot someone. She said she was walking in front of him and heard gunshots, so she ran.
Other content creators told local media about the long-standing beef between the two. Ruiz, they said, was angry that he was losing viewers to the Arizona-based “Finny Da Legend” and began demanding that he not film in certain areas, KSNV reported.
Derek Ware, a friend of the Finleys, told Kxxx that Ruiz even pepper-sprayed Tanisha Finley two years ago, KVVU reported.
“His wife said she was OK, so he was just like, ‘OK, let’s handle this another way,’” Ware said. “He controls his emotions very well. That’s what I liked about him the most.”
Ruiz was charged with two counts of open murder and ordered held without bond.
