DETROIT – Well-known Detroit restaurant owner Michael “Mike B” Brown was fatally shot early Saturday morning on the city’s west side.
The triple shooting has sparked renewed calls for stricter rules on late-night bars and so-called after-hours establishments.
Detroit police said officers were called about 4:30 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 28, to Suite 100, a cocktail bar on Schaefer Highway near Fenkell Street, for a report of a shooting.
Two other people were shot but survived, according to police. No arrests had been announced as of Monday afternoon, and investigators have not released a suspect description.
Brown was a prominent figure in Detroit’s hospitality and entertainment community for decades and was a visible supporter of Black-owned businesses.
He owned restaurants under the “Sloppy” brand, including Sloppy Chops and Sloppy Crab, and was often described as a “community builder” who invested back into Detroit neighborhoods.
“Detroit loves him,” said Pastor Maurice “Mo” Hardwick, founder of the Live in Peace Movement. “He was a real Detroiter who was about people, community and about uplifting life.”
Hardwick said Brown’s death does not reflect the way he lived or the way he treated those around him.
“It doesn’t represent him and his character,” Hardwick said. “Community was embedded in him and you could feel it in his food and his demeanor when you approached him -- very approachable. Just loved the city of Detroit. Loved his people.”
Friends, customers and fellow business owners have been sharing memories and tributes on social media, including this one from local restaurant reviewer “The Hungry Black Man.” He called the news “heartbreaking.”
In the aftermath of the shooting, community activists are renewing calls for the city to crack down on after-hours spots in residential areas.
New Era Detroit posted a video over the weekend calling on the city to act.
“As a representative of the people in the neighborhood, we stand with the people and will be asking the city of Detroit to look into applying an ordinance on how long businesses are able to stay open within local neighborhood areas,” the group said on social media.
Hardwick said he supports efforts to tighten regulations on after-hours establishments.
“Going to probably see an ordinance come down,” he said. “We are going to make sure from a community standpoint that we have our foot on that too.”
Police said the investigation into the shooting is ongoing.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact the Detroit Police Department’s homicide unit or submit an anonymous tip through Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK-UP or through Detroit Rewards TV.