Sheriff: "It's Safe To Drive," Random Shooter In Custody
WIXOM (WWJ) - An arrest was made Tuesday in connection with two dozen shootings along the I-96 corridor. A 43-year-old Wixom man is now in custody with formal charges pending.
"I'd like to assure the public that it's safe to drive; we have this person in custody. I think they can drive with a high degree of confidence they're not gonna get shot at," said Ingham County Sheriff Gene Wrigglesworth, a member of the multi-county law enforcement task force that has been investigating the case.
Wrigglesworth told WWJ Newsradio 950's Zahra Huber it was information they received over the last couple weeks, one of some 3,000 tips, that led them to the Wixom home of the 43-year-old suspect. Police searched the man's house and then took him into custody Monday night.
Wrigglesworth said the suspect was driving a vehicle that matched the description provided by one of the victims. They seized that, along with other evidence including at least one weapon.
So how confident are they that they have the correct person?
"Some of the shootings we don't have evidence on, so to say we've linked him to all 24 (shootings) would be inaccurate But it would be a heck of a coincidence if they weren't all related," Wrigglesworth said.
The suspect's name has not been released. A neighbor talking to WWJ described him as a "family man" who lives with his wife, in-laws and young daughter.
The sheriff said prosecutors in Oakland, Livingston, Ingham and Shiawassee counties along with the U.S. Attorney's office are trying to determine whether to charge the suspect federally or locally, or both. Charges could come as early as Wednesday.
All 24 shootings were reported during a two-week period in mid-to-late October. (CLICK HERE to see a complete rundown of where and when the shootings occurred). Only one person has been struck by a bullet. That man, who was shot in his backside while driving on I-96 last Saturday near the Fowlerville exit, is OK.
The crime scene where the shootings took place is 100 miles long.
