No Arrests In Murder Of Farmington Hills Party Store Owner
FARMINGTON HILLS (WWJ) - Farmington Hills police are combing through evidence looking for a solid lead in the murder of a popular party store owner.
Duraid "Dave" Loccia, owner of Tom's Party Store at Inkster north of 8 Mile, was found shot and killed on Saturday afternoon.
"It's senseless," said John Britt of Southfield, talking to WWJ Newsradio 950's Mike Campbell outside the store, two days later. "I mean, you know, it's really, really senseless that you robbed him — you got what you wanted. You didn't have to take his life."
Britt said he didn't know Loccia, but when he heard that the store owner had been murdered, he just had to stop by.
"It just ... came across my mind to, you know, come up here and say a prayer for his family; that they might find strength through this difficult time," Britt said.
Talking to WWJ on Monday, Farmington Hills Police Chief Chuck Nebus said their investigation has already been very thorough.
"Our detectives and evidence technicians spent 12 hours on Saturday a the store," said Nebus. "We purposely waited for the autopsy on Sunday so that we could discuss some of the findings with the medical examiner. And we went back to the store on Sunday; spent several more hours."
The suspect in the case is described as a tall, thin black male in his late teens or early 20s. He was wearing a green jacket and may have left the scene on foot,
Nebus said a reward will be announced later in the week following the funeral.
"We are currently in the process of talking with the Chaldean chamber (of commerce) in regards to a reward," he said. "And the family would like to take part in some kind of a reward announcement that we would expect to do, later this week, that we would make public with the family's participation."
Visitation will be held from 4 p.m to 8 p.m. on Monday at the Southfield Funeral Home on West 12 Mile Road in Southfield. The funeral is set for Tuesday at 9 a.m. at the Mother of God Chaldean Catholic Church in Southfield.
