Lost girl sexually assaulted, US to allow Canadian travelers soon, more work completed at Michigan Central
WEDNESDAY NEWS HIT - A 9-year-old girl was abducted and raped while walking, police said.
Police initially said the child left her home in Farmington Hills and walked for about two hours Sunday before getting lost so she stopped near Eight Mile and Grand River. However, police said Wednesday that they believe the child was taken in Farmington Hills.
Detroit and Farmington Hills police will give an update during a press conference at noon Wednesday. Watch it live here.
Police said a man in a white or gray 2015-2021 Jeep Renegade pulled up and asked the child if she needed help when he saw her walking. She got into the Jeep with the man before realizing he was going the wrong direction, police said. The girl told police that the man took her to a home in the area of Berg and Trojan on Detroit's west side, where he sexually assaulted her.
Suspect photo courtesy of Detroit police.
The child escaped when the man left the room. Someone who saw the girl walking called 911 and the girl was taken to Children's Hospital.
Police are still searching for the man. Anyone with information is asked to call 313-596-2250 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK-UP.
US opening borders to Canada, Mexico
In March 2020, the borders to Canada and the United States closed to Canada and Mexico. Only essential workers, such as truck drivers and nurses, were allowed to travel between Canada and the U.S.
In August of this year, Canada began allowing travel from the U.S. but the U.S. continued to prevent Canadians from visiting.
The U.S. will lift that travel ban early next month, allowing for people from Canada to come into the country regardless of the reason. The border to Mexico will also be open.
Anyone traveling into the country must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Officials are still finalizing procedures and an exact date for the reopening has not been announced yet.
Last capital stone installed on Michigan Central Station façade
Last fall, a carver created a capital stone out of a 21,000-pound block of limestone.
That capital would serve as the model for the rest of the capital stones for Michigan Central Station because none of the historic train depot's original capital stones were intact when crews started restoring the building.
MORE: Crews find sub-basement that wasn't on original MCS plans
The next step is to rebuild the masonry that the capital stones support. Then, the roof will be restored.
It's just the latest update in Ford's massive restoration of the once-bustling building.
Michigan Central closed in the '80s after train travel began declining. Over the decades, many plans were proposed for the building, but they all fell through. As the depot stood empty, it fell victim to vandals and the elements.
However, Ford purchased the train station three years ago and immediately got to work fixing up the building. The project, now in its final phase, is expected to be done in late 2022 or early 2023.
What else we're watching
- Security is being increased after a food fight escalated into a rash of fights at Detroit's East English Village Preparatory Academy.
- Police are looking for a driver who tried to rob two children at gunpoint while they were walking home in Harper Woods.
- A fire forced evacuations at the University of Michigan Hospital in Ann Arbor on Tuesday. No one was injured.
- Six Ann Arbor stores have boards on their windows and doors after a spree of break-ins.
- Michigan's only historically Black college, the Lewis College of Business, is coming back.
Live on FOX 2
Daily forecast
It's dry today, but the rain is coming back soon.
Gabby Petito died of strangulation, autopsy shows
A coroner shared Tuesday that Gabby Petito died of strangulation.
The death of the 22-year-old woman who has been missing after going on a cross-country road trip with her fiance, Brian Laundrie. Her body was found Sept. 19 in Wyoming.
The coroner said it appears Petito was dead for 3-4 weeks before her body was found.
Investigators are still searching for Laundrie, the only person of interest in the disappearance.