30-year-old LA County deputy dies during 120-mile law enforcement relay race
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is mourning the death of a San Dimas deputy who died following a medical emergency during a law enforcement relay race in the Mojave Desert.
The annual Baker to Vegas Challenge Cup relay race allows teams from various law enforcement agencies to travel 120 miles from Baker, through the desert, to Las Vegas.
The Sheriff’s Department says Deputy Levi Vargas died Saturday during the race. He was 30 years old.
The department says Vargas received medical treatment but ultimately died from his injuries. Further details about what happened were not immediately available.
According to authorities, Vargas joined the department in 2015 as a custodial assistant and later graduated from Academy Class 413, serving several assignments before landing at San Dimas Station.
“He was known among his colleagues and friends for his professionalism, commitment and compassion to our communities,” the sheriff’s department wrote.
The video shows his body being transported from a Las Vegas hospital to the morgue with a full motorcade of law enforcement.
His family said Vargas would be flown back to Southern California on Monday.
Deputy Vargas is survived by his wife, parents and siblings.
