Inkster Records 4th Murder Over July 4th Holiday Weekend
INKSTER (WWJ) - Police on Saturday recorded a fourth murder in Inkster over the July 4th holiday weekend after a 29-year-old man was shot to death in broad daylight.
Investigators say the man's body was found at the intersection of Harriet and Beech streets, located within a residential neighborhood just off Michigan Avenue and Middlebelt Road.
Bystander 27-year-old Manny Smith said he was driving down Harriet when he saw a body laying on the side of the road and had to get out of his car and sit on the curb while his stomach settled.
"That could have been anybody, you know, anybody that you know. It's crazy. You can't even walk around and then something like this happens. It's horrible," he said.
A tipster who called the WWJ Newsroom said the victim was shot multiple times in the body and the head. Police would not confirm how many times nor where the victim was shot.
Inkster Police Chief Hilton Napoleon did confirm that the murder is drug related, as are all the shootings in recent days. He said the department simply doesn't have enough manpower to patrol for narcotics.
"Way too many, too soon. But the problem is, they have to understand that with all the cutbacks we have, we cannot do narcotics enforcement out of here," he said.
The shooting happened just a few houses down from where 27-year-old Vernon Hurts was shot and killed several hours earlier, on Harriet near Carlysle Street. Hurts was one of three people killed in a 24-hour period within Inkster city limits, starting on Independence Day.
A man identified by family members as Brian Walker died at the hospital after being shot in the head behind Fast Franks party store, at Inkster Road and New York Street. Less than two hours later, police responded to a call that a man was shot in the chest at a home on Hickory Street near Pine Street. That man, who was not identified, later died at the hospital.
Anyone with information about any of the four incidents is asked to contact Inkster police at 313-563-9850 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK-UP.
You can also submit a tip online at www.1800speakup.org, or text "CSM" and your tip to CRIMES (274637).
