WEDNESDAY NEWS HIT - After an almost 30 hour-long standoff between police and an armed gunman at a home in Detroit, a second hostage escaped early Wednesday morning.
The second hostage, a man, escaped after the suspect inside fell asleep. He was brought into an ambulance to be checked for injuries.
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Second hostage escapes armed gunman after 26 hours of being held captive
The second of two hostages has managed to escape a gunman who had barricaded himself in his Detroit home. The standoff between the gunman and police has been going on since 3 a.m. Tuesday. The suspect remains inside the home.
The first hostage was allowed to leave the home earlier after police negotiated for her release.
Police are continuing to try and get the gunman to come out of the home peacefully.
The standoff situation began around 3 a.m. Tuesday after Redford police tried to make a traffic stop when the driver ran a red light. The driver didn't pull over and, instead, went to his home on Iliad Street in Detroit's Brightmoore neighborhood.
When the suspect got to the home he was unable to get in the front door and broke a window to get in. Police say the suspect also fired a single shot from a handgun that Craig said was believed to be targeted at police.
At that point, Redford police called for back-up.
Negotiators from the Detroit Police Department arrived on scene and began engaging with the suspect. Early on in their conversation, they believed the suspect to be under the influence of narcotics, possibly meth, as well as alcohol.
The suspect is believed to be connected with a triple homicide that dates back to June 2020, where three people were shot dead and then left burning inside a home on Helen Street.
Custom home builder may be at center of Macomb County corruption case
A custom home builder and member of Rob Wolchek's Hall of Shame might be at the center of a state Attorney General investigation into the misdeeds of former Macomb County Prosecutor Eric Smith.
While Smith has already indicated he plans to agree to a plea deal after admitting to taking kickbacks from a close friend, an investigation into the criminal enterprise is ongoing.
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Custom home builder may be at center of Macomb County corruption case
A custom home builder in Macomb County, who FOX 2's Rob Wolchek investigated and put in the Hall of Shame in January, may be a key part of a federal investigation in Macomb County.
The close friend identified only as 'Person A' in court documents, allegedly received more than $50,000 worth of checks from the Macomb County Forfeiture Fund Account to rent properties the individual owned. The investigation alleges the use of that account was illegal as 'Person A' would eventually kick the money back to Smith, who used it for personal expenses
In January, a Wolchek investigation found a business connection between Smith and Paul Esposito, who had misused tens of thousands of his own clients money.
Esposito's name shows up several times in campaign finance statements that Smith is required to file to the state, as well as monthly rental payments that Smith made out to Esposito.
So is Esposito "Person A?"
When Wolchek called and asked Esposito, he hung up on him.
Read more about this investigation here.
Police search for suspect who lit fireworks in Detroit gas station
The Detroit Police Department is looking for a man who was seen on surveillance video lighting a box of fireworks inside a gas station.
The incident stems from a Sept. 3 evening at a gas station in the 19800 block of W. McNichols.
The fireworks exploded throughout the store, filling the building with flares, fireworks, and smoke.
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Vandal sets off fireworks inside Detroit gas station
Detroit police say someone placed a box of fireworks inside a gas station and then lit the fuse,
The fireworks caused damage to the ceiling tiles inside the location. No injuries were reported.
Police are asking for help in identifying the suspect.
'Worth the risk' says photographer who climbed Ambassador Bridge
A photographer who calls himself Drift and is part of a community that does illegal climbs and exploration around the world pulled off quite the visual heist when he captured photos from on top of the Ambassador Bridge.
He won't say when he took the photos, but the photographer told FOX 2 taking the photos is well worth the risk.
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Ambassador Bridge photographer says free climbs are therapeutic for him
As an illegal climb and photographs atop the Ambassador Bridge are being investigated, the man called Drift behind the photos is speaking out about his hobby.
"I won't speak on how or when, or any of those things. The bridge is secure; they do a very good job of securing it," he said. "That night I was the only one there. I took all my shots via tripod, self-portraits."
The images show a sunset over Detroit with the Ambassador Bridge framed in the middle of the shot.
Drift says he's an Army veteran who used to climb during his time in the service.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection is aware of the photos but can't say when they were taken. We're told they were taken in an area secured by The Ambassador Bridge Company. They're all working together to investigate.
Teen charged in death of 12-year-old in Oak Park
A 15-year-old teen will be charged as a juvenile in the shooting death of a 12-year-old in Oak Park.
The Oakland County Prosecutor announced the charges Tuesday. The hearing was held virtually at the Oakland County Children's Village.
Ladamian Williams died in the hospital after he was shot in a home in Oak Park.
His dad said the house belongs to his girlfriend and he had dropped his son off to do school work. He wasn't aware a gun was in the house, however, police did confirm it is a legally registered firearm.
Gov. Whitmer holding Wednesday press conference
The Michigan governor plans to discuss COVID-19 and the upcoming election during a news conference on Wednesday.
She'll be speaking at 2:30 p.m. FOX 2 plans to stream the conference live on the website.
The state has begun releasing outbreak data at Michigan's schools where COVID-19 is transmitting at a higher rate than elsewhere.
Currently, case counts are spiking highest in East Lansing where Michigan State students have been quarantined after more than 200 cases had been identified.
Also joining Whitmer will be Secretary Jocelyn Benson. Yesterday, the Michigan Senate approved a bill that would allow absentee ballots to be processed earlier.
Daily Forecast
Wednesday expects to be a little warmer as temperatures climb into the 80s by late afternoon. Also a bit of rain is expected later as well.
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Wednesday warm up! A bit of rain is on the way tonight.
80 this afternoon, not again through the weekend.
Hurricane Sally makes landfall near Gulf Shores, Ala. at Category 2 strength
Hurricane Sally made landfall Wednesday near Gulf Shores, Alabama, as a Category 2 storm, pushing a surge of ocean water onto the coast and dumping torrential rain that forecasters said would cause dangerous flooding from the Florida Panhandle to Mississippi and well inland in the days ahead.
Moving at an agonizingly slow 3 mph, Sally finally came ashore at 4:45 a.m. local time with top winds of 105 mph (165 kmh), the National Hurricane Center said. Sally’s northern eyewall had raked the Gulf Coast with hurricane-force winds and rain from Pensacola Beach, Florida, westward to Dauphin Island, Alabama, for hours before its center finally hit land.
Trees were bending over and flailing around in the howling winds in downtown Pensacola, where driving rain flooded streets up to the bumpers of parked cars. In downtown Mobile, Alabama, a street light snapped, swinging wildly on its cable.
Nearly 400,000 homes and businesses had lost electricity by early Wednesday, according to the poweroutage.us site. A curfew was called in Gulf Shores due to life-threatening conditions. In the Panhandle's Escambia County, Chief Sheriff's Deputy Chip Simmons vowed to keep deputies out helping residents as long as physically possible. The county includes Pensacola, one of the largest cities on the Gulf Coast.