A 21-year-old man from Inkster was shot in the torso Friday evening in the parking lot of Wayne Road Plaza in Westland, and as of Saturday he remained hospitalized while investigators worked to track down the people responsible. Police say the shooting does not appear to have been random, even as they describe no continuing threat to the public.
Officers were called to the plaza at 890 S. Wayne Road around 7 p.m. Friday for a report of a shooting, according to MLive, which reported the man was found with a gunshot wound to his torso before being rushed to the hospital. CBS News pinned the initial dispatch at 6:56 p.m. and reported the victim was still receiving care as of Saturday.
Investigators believe the shooting was not a random act, though police have said there is no ongoing threat to the public, per the same MLive report. The plaza sits south of Cherry Hill Road along South Wayne Road, a commercial corridor that runs through both Westland and Inkster, the city the victim calls home. Westland and Inkster are adjacent municipalities in western Wayne County that share commercial corridors and coordinate closely on emergency dispatch, according to Wayne County.
Robbery Attempt Sparks Search With K-9 Unit
The shooting unfolded during an attempted robbery in the plaza's parking lot, after which the suspects fled the scene, according to Metro Detroit News, which reported that a police K-9 unit was deployed to search the area for them. ClickOnDetroit reported that Westland police cordoned off a large section of the shopping plaza's parking lot near Wayne Road and Cherry Hill Road overnight to secure physical evidence as the investigation got underway.
The shooting remains under investigation, and anyone with information is asked to contact the Westland Police Department at 734-222-9600, MLive reported. It is not yet clear whether suspect descriptions have been finalized or whether robbery or assault charges are pending against anyone in connection with the shooting.
A Pattern of Violence at Local Shopping Centers
This is not the first violent incident at a Westland retail property in recent memory. CBS Detroit reported that a fatal shooting occurred in December at a Kroger on Ford Road, a case that ended with a suspect taken into custody. Hoodline also reported a fatal Westland shooting last month, in which a suspect was caught after fleeing on foot from an apartment complex.
Should charges eventually be filed, Michigan law sets out steep penalties for non-fatal shootings. Assault with intent to commit murder is a Class A felony that can carry up to life in prison under Michigan Compiled Laws Section 750.83, according to the Michigan Legislature. A lesser charge, assault with intent to do great bodily harm less than murder, is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and fines up to $5,000 under Section 750.84.
Tracking Crime Along the Wayne Road Corridor
The Westland Police Department, led by Chief Kyle Dawley and Deputy Chief Robert Wilkie out of headquarters at 36701 Ford Road, maintains an online transparency dashboard and an interactive CLEMIS crime map that lets residents search incident data and calls for service in their neighborhoods, according to the City of Westland. Police Scorecard data shows the department fields roughly 76 sworn officers for a city of about 81,000 residents.
The investigation into Friday's shooting continues, and key details — including the suspects' identities and the victim's full condition beyond his Saturday hospitalization — remain unresolved for now. Residents along the Wayne Road corridor are left once again watching how police and prosecutors handle a shooting at one of the area's everyday shopping destinations.
