Eastpointe police investigating drive-by shooting

EASTPOINTE — Multiple individuals were caught in a hail of bullets from a drive-by shooting at a home in Eastpointe, and police are trying to identify the suspects and determine their motive.

The incident occurred shortly before 9 p.m. April 1. Police were called to the 23000 block of Kelly Road on a report of a shooting there. Upon arrival, police found multiple victims who had sustained gunshot wounds. Police immediately began rendering first aid.

Authorities did not disclose how many victims there were, nor their ages. But police said that the group was fired upon a short time prior at another location in the 19000 block of Dijon Avenue.

According to the victims, they had been parked outside a home on Dijon Avenue when a second vehicle pulled up alongside them. The occupants of the second vehicle began firing at them.

The driver of the victims’ vehicle then drove the vehicle to Kelly Road north of Nine Mile Road where he lost control of the vehicle and crashed. Police said the shooting victims have since been recovering at a local hospital.

In an email, Eastpointe Police Lt. Alexander Holish said police were trying to figure out the connection between the suspects and victims.

“At this time, we do not know the motive of the suspect or his/her identity. All victims were interviewed and indicated that they did not know why they were targeted or by whom,” Holish said.

Corey Haines, the police chief of Eastpointe, noted in a statement that officers also contacted and interviewed the occupants of the home on Dijon Avenue.

Shell casings were found in the roadway where the shooting occurred, and several bullet holes were found in the front of the home where the victims had been parked. Police said they were looking into leads on the suspect vehicle.

Holish said that Eastpointe police are taking the case very seriously.

“Drive-by shootings are rare, but they are extremely dangerous to innocent bystanders. Suspects discharge their firearms from moving vehicles without any regard for anyone in the immediate area. Suspects do not care where or who the bullets hit,” he said. “But even though the suspects are at large, there is no indication that they pose an immediate threat to the community.”

The investigation was ongoing.