He’s a “heartless grifter” who scammed more than 25 people out of hundreds of thousands of dollars, officials say. For the past several months, we’ve been investigating a Dearborn man facing a slew of allegations.
An alleged auto scam that spans multiple southeast Michigan cities and counties, and reaches into another state, has left more than 25 people out hundreds of thousands of dollars, according to police.
The state agency handling complaints and violations for Michigan’s five mental health hospitals came under scrutiny again on Tuesday.
Here are nine tips to help you save money on car insurance if you've recently been hit with costly and unexpected issues.
A Detroit man who vanished for 30 years after the murder of a punk rock singer has been tracked down in Panama.
When Zoeie Mendez looked down at the newly released mugshot of Richard Werstine, she was in shock, as it was the face of the man who was accused of killing her father 30 years ago.
Plymouth Township police said a disturbing series of investigations tied to the same household has led to disturbing charges, including child abuse, torture, unlawful imprisonment, and narcotics trafficking.
A Metro Detroit transport company is offering to pay for proper CDL training for students whose lives and futures were put on hold while the state investigates training they received at the Detroit Training Center.
A 42-inch water main in Auburn Hills failed decades early, raising concerns for 80+ miles of similar pipes.
Richard Werstine, accused of the 1993 murder of his roommate Rodney Barger in Detroit, was captured in Panama after evading authorities for over 30 years by using multiple aliases and false identities.
Despite what the CEO of the Detroit Training Center says, students still aren’t able to take their skills tests to become truck drivers, according to the Michigan Department of State.
A Canton small-business owner says he was hacked twice, had $950 stolen from his account and was then permanently banned from Facebook — accused of one of the most horrific crimes imaginable. Meta, he says, has done nothing to fix it.
Discussions and demands for accountability continue in the Oak Park School District Monday night while the school board tackles several controversies.
People living in manufactured housing communities across Southeast Michigan say their water is brown and yellow. They’re asking Local 4 to find out why.
The Michigan Court of Claims has ruled that the state isn’t legally responsible for the failure of the Edenville Dam.
Woodhaven Mayor Patricia Odette is speaking out amid an investigation into alleged misconduct after submitting and then withdrawing her resignation earlier this month.
In a lawsuit filed against Vista Maria, an all-girls facility that Local 4 began investigating over a year ago, six women and girls said the respected Dearborn Heights nonprofit that was meant to protect children instead became a “house of horrors.”
After a mother told Local 4 that her son was urinated on in the shower, a high school wrestling program in Michigan is back under investigation.
A daughter, along with her elderly mother, who had been fighting for her recently deceased father’s account funds, finally got what she needed from the credit union.
An investigation into Fowlerville High School’s varsity wrestling program has reopened after Local 4’s report on an alleged hazing incident.
Fowlerville Community Schools has reopened an investigation into allegations of misconduct involving the high school’s varsity wrestling program.
A Livingston County mother said her now 15-year-old son left the Fowlerville High School wrestling team after he reported being urinated on in the locker-room showers.
A Livingston County mother said her now 15-year-old son left the Fowlerville High School wrestling team after he reported being urinated on in the locker-room showers.
Sitting in a suit beside his attorney, Michael Justus appeared in federal court Thursday for sentencing with character letters from family, friends, his partner and therapist, along with a statement of his own.
A registered sex offender from Westland is back behind bars after federal agents said he was caught transporting graphic images and videos of children as young as infants.
A woman whose high school photos were digitally altered to appear nude and then shared online says she feels “completely manipulated” and let down by a justice system that has so far spared one of the men involved from jail time.
Condo owners were told to keep paying Homeowners Association fees or face foreclosure after one of the Le Chateau Condominium buildings in Southfield burned down.
Michigan families are facing car insurance cancellations for not listing infants and toddlers on their policies, highlighting a gap in state law.
There are hundreds of people listed as “missing” across the state of Michigan, and some of the cases in Metro Detroit have been ongoing for several decades.
Pressure mounts on Michigan Department of Health and Human Services after unannounced active shooter drill at child psychiatric hospital.
The story of Daniel “DJ” Phillips, 19, of Washington Township, sparked the Local 4 Investigators “Randomly Targeted” series.
As a city council person it’s Priscilla Ayres-Reiss’ job to protect and fight for the citizens of Southgate. She had no idea she would become a victim and need someone to fight for her when her Facebook account got stolen.
It’s a desperate push to loosen confidentiality rules around Child Protective Services records in Michigan, arguing the change is necessary to prevent deaths like that of 5-year-old Ethan Belcher of Detroit.
Jury selection began Tuesday in the murder trial of Dale Warner, who is accused of killing his wife, Dee Warner, in Lenawee County.
GEICO is suing a Southfield-area woman because she did not list her 12-year-old daughter, who does not drive, on her personal injury protection form.
Lawsuits have been filed against Michigan's Department of Health and Human Services and specific Child Protective Services workers, accusing them of negligence in the case of 5-year-old Ethan Belcher, who died in 2023 from severe abuse and torture.
A Southfield-area woman is being sued by GEICO for not listing her 12-year-old daughter, who does not drive, on her personal injury protection form.
GEICO is suing a Southfield-area woman because she did not list her 12-year-old daughter, who does not drive, on her personal injury protection form.
Michigan lawmakers are continuing to press the U.S. Postal Service for answers and are asking for a tour of the facility after a man was killed in a machine at a facility in Allen Park.
Several women have come forward to share concerns about a social media content creator filming them without their consent. But officials said he’s not breaking the law.
Several women have come forward to share concerns about a social media content creator filming them without their consent. But officials said he’s not breaking the law.
Several Livonia residents are concerned about a social media content creator recording women and children in public without their knowledge.
Typically, a compliance plan follows such an audit. However, it has been two months with no plan released to fix the issues, which has families upset and worried.
Three prominent men from Metro Detroit are accused of openly discussing being pedophiles during graphic chats about young boys, according to the FBI.
Three men -- a doctor, an attorney, and a therapist -- from Oakland and Wayne counties are involved in a web of child pornography chats, and some sexually abused young boys, according to federal officials.
Hamtramck’s already-chaotic 2025 election has escalated into a full-scale legal battle, with City Clerk Rana Faraj filing a sweeping lawsuit alleging retaliation, defamation, and violations of Michigan’s Whistleblower Protection Act.
Nearly 15 months after 81-year-old Susan Hammerton was beaten, strangled, and fatally stabbed inside her Pittsfield Township home, her family says they are still fighting for basic information about the case — and for a criminal trial they fear may never happen.
Discipline has been recommended for three high-ranking officials with the Detroit Fire Department in a payroll fraud investigation months after the Investigators at Local 4 looked into allegations.
Discipline has been recommended for three high-ranking officials with the Detroit Fire Department in a payroll fraud investigation months after the Investigators at Local 4 looked into allegations.
People living in the area around one Michigan intersection told Local 4 that it’s smelled like “raw sewage” for years.
Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries refuted allegations of inadequate living conditions in their veteran housing after a report highlighted issues.
Residents living in a Highland Park veterans’ apartment building said they are facing unsafe and unsanitary conditions at the facility operated by Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries.
Something stinks in Macomb County and it’s described as a “raw sewage” odor. It’s something county residents and business owners have been dealing with for years.
Fewer than 90 days before 36-year-old Nicholas John Acker was found dead in a mail-sorting machine at the USPS Detroit Network Distribution Center in Allen Park, a formal grievance had been filed warning that the very same machine was unsafe, Local 4 has learned.
Five years after the Edenville Dam failure, which left 11,000 residents affected and destroyed roughly 2,500 buildings, the community continues to seek accountability.
EGLE said that there’s just not enough money to take care of Michigan’s dams -- especially the ones that have gone decades putting off maintenance. And it’s putting people and property at risk.
Defense attorneys for David Taylor, the former leader of Kingdom of God Global Church, now facing federal forced labor and money laundering conspiracy charges, are asking a judge to reconsider a detention order requiring him to stay in custody while he awaits trial.
A Michigan senator said he was “misled and stonewalled” by the state when he started asking questions about how people are treated inside Michigan’s mental health care system.
The attorney representing more than a dozen former Vista Maria residents said he will hold a press conference on Wednesday.
Local 4 Insiders spoke out three days after a fire at a Southgate senior living facility, sharing concerns about the response efforts.
Attorney Michael Jaafer confirmed to The Investigators on Local 4 Thursday that his firm has launched an investigation into what he called “disturbing allegations” from former residents of Vista Maria, a youth residential facility in Dearborn Heights, and said his firm plans to file suit.
A state audit has revealed major failures in Michigan’s school bus safety system -- including unqualified drivers, missed inspections, and buses deemed unsafe still being driven on the road.
Hamtramck City Council member Mohammed Hassan is one step closer to trial after a judge ruled there is enough evidence that he forged an absentee ballot application in 2023.
Bullying has plagued schools for generations. The behavior is so deeply engrained that some people even go as far as to consider it a rite of passage -- but an expert says we shouldn’t think of it that way. She believes bullying behavior doesn’t belong in Michigan schools.
Suicide threats, bullying, and drugs are among the top problems being reported in Michigan schools through the OK2SAY program.
This interactive investigative report allows you to explore data from Michigan’s student safety program (OK2SAY) and Michigan’s Center for Educational Performance and Information (CEPI).
The Investigators at Local 4 went through three years of data published by the state of Michigan in its Recipient Rights annual reports.
Forced labor, terror through text messages, and denied food and sleep all to support a luxury lifestyle. That’s the case the U.S. Attorney is building against a Taylor man and his business partner.
“I thank God every day,” said Shelby Clark, who said she encountered him posing as a father looking for a babysitter. “My family thanks God every day. My parents tell me I had an angel on my shoulder that day.”
Brandon Cifani, 29, faced a federal judge Friday, and while a woman who said she encountered him last month described what it was like to see him again, others are allegedly coming forward with similar experiences.
“I thank God every day,” said Shelby Clark, who said she encountered him posing as a father looking for a babysitter. “My family thanks God every day. My parents tell me I had an angel on my shoulder that day.”
Justin Miller, 22, of Farmington Hills, was arrested this week as part of an FBI investigation into the online distribution and production of child sexually abusive material and connections to the violent 764 terror network, according to a federal complaint.
A motion hearing was held on Friday for the man accused in the cold case murder of a mother who was abducted after dropping her son off at school over 35 years ago.
The Investigators at Local 4 has obtained a report conducted by an outside law firm investigating allegations against three suspended Hamtramck employees.
Eight months later, Jeffrey Bernhard is dedicated to being a single father and is leaning on his faith,
Police are seeking the public’s help in locating 22-year-old Jacob Angeles, who disappeared after attending the Michigan Renaissance Festival in Holly on Saturday.