‘His life is over’: 16-year-old killed 13-year-old boy over stolen cellphone, Detroit police say

Ryan McLeod charged as adult

Ryan McLeod has been charged in connection with a July 26, 2022, shooting in Detroit. (Detroit Police Department)

DETROIT – Detroit police said a 16-year-old who is charged as an adult with murder went to the home of a 13-year-old boy in the middle of the day and killed him over a stolen cellphone.

The shooting happened around 6:55 p.m. July 26 in the 8320 block of Homer Street in Southwest Detroit, according to authorities.

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Detroit police Chief James White said an iPhone had been stolen a few weeks ago, so Ryan McLeod, 16, of Detroit, got into a car and drove to the location on Homer Street. There were children outside, and McLeod fired multiple shots, the chief said.

“This all started from a cellphone that was perhaps stolen, and a car full of young people decided they would go to this location,” White said. “They saw the victim, 13 years old, out front. Someone in that vehicle -- we believe to be the driver -- fired a shot, striking the victim, and senselessly, he was murdered on the streets, in the middle of the day, in the summer, over a cellphone.”

Police said they found the 13-year-old Detroit boy with a gunshot wound to his back. Medical officials arrived and took him to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

McLeod is charged as an adult with first-degree premeditated murder, felonious assault, and two felony firearm violations.

“I’ve got a 16-year-old whose life is over because he pulled a trigger to settle a dispute over an iPhone. An iPhone,” White said. “His life is over, and a 13-year-old who won’t get a chance to work in Ceasefire, won’t get a chance to be the police chief, the City Council president, whose life is over.”

McLeod was arraigned Monday morning (Aug. 1) at 36th District Court.

Ryan McLeod (Detroit Police Department)

About the Author:

Derick is the Lead Digital Editor for ClickOnDetroit and has been with Local 4 News since April 2013. Derick specializes in breaking news, crime and local sports.