File photo: a Spirit Halloween store in a former Babies “R” Us in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, in September 2023. This is not the Madison Heights, Michigan, store. Photo by Dan Keck, Wikimedia Commons, dedicated to the public domain under CC0 1.0. Cropped by The Fostoria Free Press.

Author: FFP Ai Bot

MADISON HEIGHTS, Mich. – A 21-year-old man was shot and killed Friday afternoon at a Spirit Halloween store in this Detroit suburb, and the 21-year-old man accused of firing the shots was hospitalized after bystanders beat him as police took him into custody, authorities said.

The shooting happened shortly after 2 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30 (about 2:04 p.m., according to police, WWJ reported), at the Spirit Halloween in the Madison Place Shopping Complex in the 32000 block of John R Road, south of 14 Mile Road, while the store was busy with last-minute costume shoppers, according to Madison Heights police and Detroit-area news outlets.

Police said the victim, a Detroit resident, suffered multiple gunshot wounds. Officers gave him emergency aid at the scene before he was taken to a hospital, where he later “succumbed to those injuries,” the Madison Heights Police Department said in a news release quoted by NBC News. Police have not released his name.

The two men knew each other and were involved in an argument before the shooting, police said, according to CBS Detroit and WDIV-TV. Accounts differ on exactly where it happened: CBS Detroit, WDIV and NBC News reported the shooting was inside the store, and witnesses told FOX 2 Detroit the gunfire rang out from the store’s entrance, while MLive, citing police, said the altercation happened in a store parking lot. Investigators said the shooting was not random and there is no known ongoing threat to the public.

Suspect in custody

The alleged shooter, a 21-year-old Oak Park man, “sustained non life threatening injuries after being assaulted by several bystanders as officers took him into custody,” police said in the release, which was quoted by NBC News. WWJ and MLive also reported that bystanders assaulted him. CBS Detroit and FOX 2 Detroit, however, reported that the people who attacked him were members of the victim’s family. He was taken to a different hospital and remains in police custody. Police have not released his name.

Officers recovered a 9mm handgun at the scene, police said, according to WDIV and MLive.

“Based on the evidence gained thus far, investigators anticipate seeking criminal charges in this case,” the department said. MLive reported that detectives will send their reports to the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office for review. No charges had been announced as of Saturday night.

LeMerise told CBS Detroit that investigators were still working to determine whether the man was legally allowed to carry the gun.

The suspect’s wife told WDIV that her husband, who she said holds a concealed pistol license, fired in self-defense after the other man confronted the family as they were leaving the store with their three children. Police have not confirmed that account and said they plan to pursue charges.

Shoppers flee

Witnesses told reporters that they at first mistook the first shot for a balloon popping before several more shots followed. Shoppers ran out through the front and back doors, and some left belongings behind.

Police from Troy, Ferndale and Hazel Park helped Madison Heights officers at the scene, FOX 2 reported. The store was temporarily closed afterward, with signs directing customers to the chain’s Sterling Heights location, WDIV reported.

Police are asking anyone who saw the shooting or has video of it to call Detective Sgt. Kari Randolph at 248-837-2737.

Separate shooting in California

Hours later, a separate shooting inside a Spirit Halloween store at Solano Town Center in Fairfield, California, killed a woman whose family says she was pregnant and wounded six other people. Police there are still searching for the shooter. Read our full report on the Fairfield shooting.

The two shootings do not appear to be connected, NBC News reported.

What’s next

Madison Heights detectives expect to present the case to Oakland County prosecutors, who will decide on charges. Police have not released the names of the man who died or the man in custody. The Fostoria Free Press will update this story as more information becomes available.

This report is based on information from the Madison Heights Police Department, NBC News, CBS Detroit, WDIV-TV (ClickOnDetroit), FOX 2 Detroit and MLive.

Sources: NBC News; CBS Detroit; WDIV/ClickOnDetroit; FOX 2 Detroit; MLive.