A man has just been charged with murder after killing Detroit synagogue leader Samantha Woll just a couple weeks after the horrific Muslim terrorist attack in Israel.
The new details explain the context in which the chief of police suggested the motive wasn’t antisemitism.
Here’s the short version, which is that her death resulted from a home invasion:
Here’s more from NBC News:
A man being held in connection with the fatal stabbing of Detroit synagogue leader Samantha Woll was charged with murder, prosecutors said Wednesday.
The suspect, identified as Michael Jackson-Bolanos, 28, of Detroit, had been taken into custody Sunday as part of the investigation into Woll’s death in October, said Wayne County Prosecutor Kym L. Worthy. She added that there are “no facts to suggest” that he knew Woll or that her killing was motivated by antisemitism.
Jackson-Bolanos also faces additional charges of breaking and entering without permission and lying to a peace officer.
Detroit Police Chief James White said the suspect came on police’s radar a few weeks ago and was being investigated for larcenies in the area of Woll’s home, but he “timed out,” and authorities had to release him.
“Once he was released, we kept an eye on him until we had enough to ultimately make an arrest,” White said.
He declined to discuss specifics of the case, including what led police to determine how the suspect was linked to Woll’s death. Prosecutors said the investigation included witness interviews, hours of security footage, cellular data and forensic evidence.
Worthy said her office had informed Woll’s family that an arrest had been made. They could not immediately be reached for comment.
Woll had attended a wedding before leaving about 12:30 a.m. Oct. 21, police said. About six hours later, a 911 call was placed to report a person lying on the ground unresponsive outside Woll’s home in Detroit’s Lafayette Park neighborhood, with a trail of blood leading inside.
Investigators believe Woll was attacked inside the home, then stumbled outside and collapsed in the yard, White previously told reporters.