ORION TOWNSHIP, Mich. – A woman was seriously injured after a random carjacking at the Baldwin Commons shopping plaza in Orion Township on Tuesday.
Background: Mother shot during carjacking outside Oakland County strip mall, man arrested after police chase
Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said a 25-year-old Ann Arbor man appeared to have been waiting in the parking lot before targeting the woman, who was walking with her young son.
The victim, a woman in her 40s, was shot in the hip and taken into surgery Tuesday night. Bouchard said the bullet came dangerously close to a major artery.
“The first words out of one of the nurses was, ‘She’s lost a lot of blood,’” Bouchard said.
The sheriff called the woman’s survival a miracle.
“She’s stable, but there’s still a very long road medically,” Bouchard said.
Her young son witnessed the shooting and ran to a nearby store for help.
Suspect waited, watched for target, officials say
Investigators say the suspect deliberately staked out the plaza before making his move.
“This individual sat outside of this shopping mall watching and waiting and as soon as she got to the parking lot he ran, literally ran around a car and then confronted her and her young son and shot her to take her car,” Bouchard said.
Flock cameras -- a network of license plate readers used by law enforcement -- tracked the stolen vehicle into Groveland Township, where it crashed and the suspect fled on foot. An undercover detective later located and arrested him.
Suspect has violent criminal past, officials say
Bouchard said the suspect has a violent criminal history and has been uncooperative with investigators since his arrest.
“He’s currently on probation for hog-tying a woman, duct taping her and suffocating her with a plastic bag over her head, and he’s back out on the street saying no harm, no foul. Is that how the justice system works for our victims?” Bouchard said.
Authorities are working with the Oakland County prosecutor’s office and pursuing federal charges against the suspect.
“He should not be on the street again to find another innocent victim,” Bouchard said.
Bouchard is urging the public to remain alert and report any suspicious activity to law enforcement.