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Michigan shootings: six dead in Kalamazoo as 'gunman kills randomly' Michigan shootings: seven dead in Kalamazoo after 'random' attacks
(35 minutes later)
A man has been arrested in Michigan after the “random” killing of at least seven people, including a 14-year-old girl, who were shot at multiple locations in the town of Kalamazoo. A man has been arrested in Michigan after the “random” killing of at least seven people, including a 14-year-old girl, who were shot at multiple locations in and around the city of Kalamazoo. Three people were injured.
Police said a gunman in his mid-40s, who remained at large for much of Saturday night, had launched a spree of “random acts of violence”. Police described “ugly” scenes after the shootings, by “a guy going around randomly killing innocent people”. A 45-year-old man was arrested at 12.40am local time (0540 GMT) who police said was a “strong suspect”.
Two people were shot outside an automotive dealer in Kalamazoo, about 140 miles west of Detroit, at around 10pm. A separate shooting occurred outside a restaurant in a neighboring township, in which four people were killed. Several others were wounded. The spree began at around 6pm on Saturday, when a woman was shot multiple times outside a housing complex in eastern Kalamazoo county, according to Undersheriff Paul Matyas. Police believe the woman was babysitting several children, who were unharmed in the incident. The victim was taken to a local hospital where she remains in serious condition.
“These appear to be random acts of violence,” said Jeff Hadley, chief of Kalamazoo public safety. Hours later, two people were shot dead outside a car dealership in the city of Kalamazoo, roughly 140 miles west of Detroit and a 15-minute drive from the earlier shooting. The dead are believed to be a father and son..
At 1.20am local time (0620 GMT) on Sunday Hadley told a local news station that a “strong suspect” was in connection over the shootings. “That person is being brought back [to public safety headquarters] and we’re trying to get information out as quick as possible to calm people’s fears up there in the community.” A female witness who observed the shooting in a nearby vehicle was unharmed, according to Jeff Hadley, chief of Kalamazoo public safety. She is currently being interviewed.
Hadley told the Guardian: “We’re fairly certain that he is the suspect but we’re still in the process of determining that 100%.” “These appear to be random acts of violence,” Hadley added.
The suspect was arrested “without confrontation”, the police chief said, and one weapon was recovered from the vehicle. Roughly 15 minutes later, police responded to a nearby restaurant, where the same gunman is believed to have shot and killed five others. Early reports indicated an eight-year-old child was among the dead at the restaurant, but Matyas said the victim was a 14-year-old female.
Liutenant Dale Hinz of Michigan state police said: “It’s important for the public to know that we believe we have our suspect in custody. We believe this situation has been resolved at this point.” Hadley said the suspect was apprehended around 12.40am in downtown Kalamazoo, driving a vehicle matching the description of a dark-colored Chevy HHR captured on CCTV at the car dealership.
Hinz said the suspect was apprehended around 12.40am in downtown Kalamazoo, driving a vehicle matching the description of a dark-coloured Chevy HHR captured on CCTV at the auto dealership. “That person is being brought back [to police headquarters] and we’re trying to get information out as quick as possible to calm people’s fears up there in the community,” Hadley told the Guardian.
“We’re fairly certain that he is the suspect but we’re still in the process of determining that 100%.” The suspect was arrested “without confrontation”, the police chief said, and one weapon was recovered from the vehicle.
Multiple state agencies were involved in the investigation, including Michigan state police, the Kalamazoo department of public safety and Kalamazoo county sheriff’s office.Multiple state agencies were involved in the investigation, including Michigan state police, the Kalamazoo department of public safety and Kalamazoo county sheriff’s office.
Wood-TV reported that a woman was shot multiple times earlier in the evening but it’s unclear if the incidents were related. Matyas said law enforcement officials were still at the attack scenes, and described the investigation as very fluid”.
“We’ve had several shootings here tonight, in the county and the city of Kalamazoo,” Undersheriff Paul Matyas told Wood-TV. “They all appear to be related. We have multiple people dead. In summary what it looks like is we have somebody just driving around, finding people and shooting them dead in their tracks.” “It’s a very ugly scene – all of them,” he said. “All the agencies involved are mulling over it.”
A woman survived unharmed in the vehicle targeted by the shooter at the auto dealership, Hadley said. She was being interviewed. He continued: “I’ve been 40 years involved in police work, and I’ve seen a lot of grizzly scenes, but this one is ugly in that, this is just a guy going around randomly killing innocent people. That’s what makes this one so ugly.”