Detroit authorities have reported a grim discovery in Southwest Detroit, where three bodies were found in the basement of a home, and now a suspect is in custody related to the triple homicide. WXYZ reports the suspect's name has not been disclosed. Yesterday, police shared that all three victims died from blunt force trauma, with some exhibiting additional cuts.
Officers responded to the scene on Edsel Street while investigating a missing person, and during that time a man approached them claiming to have survived an assault in the property, informing them he had been hit on the head with a hammer twice; this account helped direct police to the location where the decedent victims were found, detailed Assistant Chief Charles Fitzgerald, as quoted by WWJ Newsradio and ClickOnDetroit, Fitzgerald added, the bodies appeared discarded, partially concealed amid old, dirty laundry and one beneath a carpet.
Identified victims include 66-year-old Norman Hamlin, a Persian Gulf War Marine Corps veteran who owned the home, 72-year-old William Barrett, and 65-year-old Mark Barnett, Hamlin, who was known to willingly open his home to others, has been remembered warmly by his friend Joel Bond; Bond expressed his concerns about the activity at Hamlin's residence in a statement obtained by WXYZ, where drugs were suspected to be used though this has yet to be confirmed by police.
The investigation remains ongoing, as detectives are methodically examining the area for evidence, including video assets and other technological means, which might lead to further developments in the case; retired Assistant Chief Steve Dolunt hinted to ClickOnDetroit that the violent nature of the killings may suggest the perpetrator was acquainted with the victims and police are conversing with locals and utilizing the account of the surviving witness to move the investigation forward, Dolunt emphasized the importance of community cooperation in such cases, despite any existing 'no snitch' policies, to prevent such violence from recurring.
Authorities are asking anyone with information to come forward and contact the Detroit police or anonymously call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK-UP; this collaboration between citizenry and law enforcement is crucial as Detroit grapples with the aftermath of such an unsettling event, and seeks pathways to communal healing and future safety as Fitzgerald has suggested is his "ultimate concern."
