Arrest brings relief to Detroit's Lafayette Park after weeks of tension following Samantha Woll's murder
(CBS DETROIT) – Those who live in Detroit's Lafayette Park neighborhood are at ease this evening knowing the man suspected of killing prominent Jewish leader Samantha Woll is behind bars.
Mary Van Dyke kept her head on a swivel for 53 days as Detroit police sought Woll's killer.
"We were very cautious. You know, I let my dog out, I wouldn't let her out after dark too much. Or if I did, literally right here in front of my door and run back in because we didn't know," Van Dyke said.
Until Woll's murder, the only thing neighbors worried about was the occasional car break-in, which put Michael Jackson-Bolanos, a two-time convict, on the police's radar.
The 28-year-old, who was sentenced in 2014 and 2019 for receiving and concealing stolen property, was being investigated by police for larcenies in the area of Woll's home, but he was released pending further investigation
"They're trying to build their case a little bit more, see if he'd make a false statement–if he'd put himself somewhere else that would lead them to believe 'okay, we got him," said Steve Dolunt, Former Assistant Police Chief of Detroit.
Dolunt told CBS News Detroit this is what likely happened between the time police first talked to Jackson-Bolanos and his arrest on Sunday.
"So there's probably a combination of physical surveillance and technical surveillance to ensure that he didn't commit any more crimes in that area and that no one else in that Lafayette Park community was in any danger," Dolunt said.
Van Dyke says she's now seen the murder suspect's mugshot but doesn't recognize him.
"There's so much traffic up and down Lafayette. I'm assuming he walked through here. And he probably has walked through here before. Just when we see everybody, we don't think anybody is suspicious," Van Dyke said.