World

Photo: The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Law enforcement personal investigate the scene of a mulit-vehicle accident on Las Vegas Blvd. and Flamingo Road Thursday, Feb. 21, 2013. (AP Photo/Las Vegas Review-Journal, Jeff Scheid)

Police searched Friday for a Range Rover with dark tinted windows and custom rims that set off a fiery crash on the Las Vegas Strip when someone in the luxury SUV opened fire on a Maserati in a scene that onlookers described as worthy of an action flick.

Three people were killed and at least six more were injured in what marked the latest in a series of violent episodes in Las Vegas in recent months.

Clark County Sheriff Doug Gillespie told reporters the shooting was sparked by an argument in the valet area of the nearby Aria hotel-casino, and spilled over to one of the busiest intersections on the Las Vegas Strip. As bullets flew from the Range Rover, the Maserati ran a red light and smashed into a taxi that exploded into flames, killing the driver and a passenger in the taxi. The driver of the Maserati was also killed, and his passenger was wounded.

Police have not released the identities of the victims.

Three more cars and a utility truck also collided as the Range Rover sped off in the darkness at about 4:30 a.m.

Las Vegas police Sgt. John Sheahan said the Range Rover was last seen near the Venetian resort as it headed north from the shooting scene. He said police have video from traffic cameras at the intersection and were checking hotel surveillance systems, but added that the video will not be made public.

"What happened will not be tolerated," Gillespie said, vowing that the shooters would be "found and prosecuted to the full extent of the law."

The effects of the shooting and crashes were felt hours later as the Strip remained closed, leading to snarled traffic, until it reopened late Thursday night.

The fiery rampage shocked tourists.

"We get stabbings, and gang violence," said Mark Thompson, who was visiting from Manchester, England, with his wife, "but this is like something out of a movie. Like 'Die Hard' or something."