Jzamir Keys was sentenced on December 16, 2025 to 18 years to life in Nevada prison after pleading guilty to second-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon and battery with the use of a deadly weapon for his role in the August 2023 hit-and-run killing of retired police chief Andreas “Andy” Probst. Because Keys was 16 at the time of the crime, Nevada law requires that he be made eligible for parole after serving 20 calendar years, which places his first possible parole hearing in the mid-2040s.18 News Now. Las Vegas Men Get Life for Ex-Police Chief’s Hit-and-Run Murder
What Keys Did
On the morning of August 14, 2023, Keys was riding as a passenger in a stolen car driven by Jesus Ayala across the northwest Las Vegas valley. About 30 minutes before the fatal collision, the pair struck a 72-year-old bicyclist near Fort Apache Road and Washburn Road; that man survived with minor injuries.2Fox 5 Vegas. Las Vegas Authorities: 2nd Suspect Arrested in Hit-and-Run Death of Bicyclist They then encountered Probst, 64, on his regular morning ride. Ayala swerved into him deliberately. Probst was killed.
Keys filmed the collision on his cellphone. The video captured both teenagers laughing.3KTLA. Mothers of Teens Accused of Running Down Former California Police Chief Speak Out That recording is what turned the case from a hit-and-run investigation into a murder prosecution, and it is why Keys, who never took the wheel, was charged and sentenced alongside the driver.
The Plea Deal
Keys entered his guilty plea on October 14, 2025, roughly three weeks before a trial that had been set for November 3. Under the agreement, he pleaded guilty to two counts: second-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon, and battery with the use of a deadly weapon. Several other felony counts from the October 2023 indictment were dismissed in exchange.48 News Now. 2nd Teenager Takes Deal in Las Vegas Murder of Retired Police ChiefSecond Man Accused of Hitting, Killing Retired Police Chief Enters Plea Agreement
The original indictment, returned by a Clark County grand jury in October 2023, had included murder, attempted murder, residential burglary, two counts of failing to stop at the scene of a crash, two counts of battery, three counts of grand larceny of a vehicle, and three counts of possession of a stolen vehicle.5Las Vegas Review-Journal. Teen Suspects Plead Not Guilty to Murder Charges in Fatal Hit-and-Run Crystal Probst, the victim’s widow, said the family accepted the deals rather than sit through a trial. “Choosing peace over prolonged suffering is not weakness, it is strength,” she said. “We refuse to give them the power to reopen these wounds.”6The National Desk. Sentencing: Two Suspects Convicted of Murder of Las Vegas Bicyclist
The Sentence
Clark County District Court Judge Jacqueline Bluth handed down the sentence at the Regional Justice Center on December 16, 2025. Keys received 18 years to life. Ayala, as the driver, received 20 years to life plus a consecutive two-to-10-year term on the battery count. Both were ordered to pay restitution to the Probst family; the amount was not publicly disclosed.7Las Vegas Review-Journal. Judge Orders Life Sentences for Duo Who Hit and Killed Retired Police Chief on Bike
Keys did not address the court, telling Judge Bluth he had nothing to say. Judge Bluth said the case was more than a joyride: “It just kept going and going and escalating and escalating, and more people kept getting hurt.”18 News Now. Las Vegas Men Get Life for Ex-Police Chief’s Hit-and-Run Murder Chief Deputy District Attorney John Giordani called it “one of the most callous and heinous homicides I have dealt with in my career,” and both he and District Attorney Steve Wolfson said the sentences were the toughest available under Nevada law given that the defendants had been juveniles when the crime occurred.8Clark County District Attorney’s Office. Hit-and-Run Murderers Sentenced to Life
When Keys Becomes Eligible for Parole
Keys’s minimum sentence reads as 18 years, but the parole floor is 20. That is because of Nevada Assembly Bill 267, enacted in 2015, which prohibits life-without-parole sentences for crimes committed by anyone under 18 and requires that a juvenile offender convicted of an offense resulting in one victim’s death be made eligible for parole after serving 20 calendar years.9Nevada Legislature. Assembly Bill No. 267 The statute followed a line of U.S. Supreme Court decisions holding that juveniles have greater capacity for rehabilitation and cannot be automatically sentenced to die in prison.
With credit for time already served since his 2023 arrest, Keys is expected to reach his first parole hearing in the mid-2040s. Eligibility is not release. The Nevada Board of Parole Commissioners decides whether to grant parole based on the circumstances of the crime, institutional behavior, and other factors, and can deny release and reset the hearing date.18 News Now. Las Vegas Men Get Life for Ex-Police Chief’s Hit-and-Run Murder Because his top sentence is life, denial can continue indefinitely.
How a Passenger Ended Up Charged With Murder
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police arrested Ayala the day of the collision, but only on hit-and-run related charges. Detectives did not know the strike had been intentional. The cellphone video Keys had recorded began circulating among Las Vegas high school students in the weeks that followed, and in late August 2023 a student showed it to a school resource officer, who passed it to detectives.10NewsNation. Las Vegas Hit-and-Run Murder: Andy Probst The footage established intent. Keys was arrested separately after it surfaced.2Fox 5 Vegas. Las Vegas Authorities: 2nd Suspect Arrested in Hit-and-Run Death of Bicyclist
Both teenagers were prosecuted in the adult criminal justice system. Nevada law permits that for defendants aged 16 or older.118 News Now. Will 2 Teens Accused of Deadly Crime Spree Face Death Penalty That is how a 16-year-old passenger with a phone ended up facing the same murder count as the driver, and how the video ultimately drove the sentence.
The Civil Case Is Separate
The criminal sentence is not the family’s only avenue. The Probsts have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Ayala, Keys, and Hyundai, the manufacturer of the stolen car used in the attack. The suit seeks a jury trial and at least $15,000 in damages, Nevada’s standard civil filing threshold, and targets the vulnerability that let Ayala and Keys bypass the ignition using the USB method popularized on social media.128 News Now. Las Vegas Family Sues Hyundai After Retired Chief Dies in Hit-and-Run Involving Stolen Car Any civil judgment would be in addition to the restitution ordered at sentencing.