Detroit police say drive-by shooting that critically injured minor part of car theft ring investigation
DETROIT (FOX 2) - A drive-by shooting, a car theft ring, and a teen's murder last week are all linked to the shooting of an 11-year-old girl who was taken to a Detroit hospital in critical condition earlier this morning.
Detroit police offered a glimpse into the probe that has already yielded several arrests as they worked to untangle how the thefts of several vehicles from nearby dealerships could be related to the shooting up of a home on the city's east side Tuesday morning.
The critical injuring of a minor around 4 a.m. has only added to the urgency for police to track down the shooters.
"This case has a lot of different layers," Chief James White said Tuesday afternoon. "We're confident that we're going to be able to close not only this non-fatal shooting, but another homicide in this investigation."
Four people were arrested in connection to the drive-by shooting that unfolded in the 6000 block of Pensylvania near I-94 and Gratiot and a fifth person was expected to be in custody as soon as Tuesday night. The ages of those arrested are 18, 19, 20, and 23.
A total of 23 rounds were fired into the home. One struck the child in the head while she was sleeping on the couch. Witnesses gave varying descriptions about the number of people that were in the home at the time, ranging from one to 20 individuals.
Also retrieved was a weapon believed to have been used in the shooting.
How it relates to the wider investigation of car thefts remains a mystery, but White did confirm two vehicles recovered at the Feb. 20 scene and another homicide last week were tied to the auto theft ring.
Adding to the complexity of the case is Tuesday's shooting wasn't the first time the home had been targeted. Asst. Chief Charles Fitzgerald said it was the site of another drive-by shooting in December.
No suspects were arrested.
It's unclear why the home was targeted, but White confirmed it may be gang-related.
The Detroit Police Department's commercial auto theft unit has been working with federal agencies to bust open what appears to be an organized crime ring that has led to a rash of cars and trucks being stolen out of businesses and dealerships.
That investigation remains wide open, though White did confirm that three people had been taken into custody in connection with the thefts - two yesterday and one late last night.
"It's early, but we have tied a couple of the vehicles in that ring to this incident and another incident," he said.
The other incident was an early-morning shooting reported on Feb. 16 where a 17-year-old male was found dead in a car in the area of Mack and Balfour.