Discovery Channel reality star killed cellmate in Las Vegas jail: cops charge

A Discovery Channel reality star allegedly beat his cellmate to death in a Las Vegas jail and is now facing a murder charge, authorities said.

Chad Ollinger, 41, was the only other person in the cell with the dead prisoner, Las Vegas police said in a press release Saturday. Ollinger is a star on “Mystery at Blind Frog Ranch,” which has run for five seasons on Discovery.

Guards at Clark County Detention Center were conducting routine checks around 11:15 p.m. Friday when they passed Ollinger’s cell and found the other prisoner was unconscious, cops said. The other man has not been publicly identified.

The man “was suffering from apparent blunt force injuries” and first responders provided aid, but the man was pronounced dead at the scene, Las Vegas police said. Ollinger and the victim were involved in a physical altercation earlier in the day, investigators said.

Ollinger was originally held in Las Vegas on an out-of-state warrant, according to online jail records. He was wanted for contempt of court and had been behind bars since Oct. 27.

The reality star also has a history of prior run-ins with the law. In November 2024, he was involved in a motorcycle chase in Texas after running a stop sign in front of a cop car and then speeding off, authorities said at the time.

Three months later, he was arrested again in Texas for driving without a license. In July 2025, his family reported him missing out of Amarillo, but he was found shortly afterward in Albuquerque, N.M.

“Mystery at Blind Frog Ranch” follows Chad and his father, Duane, as they search for treasure on their vast property in eastern Utah.