DETROIT—A suspect has been identified in a drive-by shooting that left a man dead and five other people wounded outside an unlicensed banquet hall early Tuesday in Detroit, the city’s interim police chief said.
Chief James White told reporters that an arrest likely would be made Tuesday in connection with the shooting that occurred about 2 a.m. on the city’s east side.
Two men and three women were being treated for non-life-threatening injuries, White said.
More than 100 people were gathered for an event at the banquet hall at the time of the shooting. The building’s exterior was riddled with bullets.
“Preliminary evidence suggests that this was an exchange of gunfire from people both at the location as well as the perpetrator who shot into the location,” White said. “This was some type of conflict between the two parties involved. This was not a random shooting.”
White said investigators have learned the building and banquet hall have not been licensed to operate since 2013.
“Later this afternoon, we‘ll be working with the Buildings and Safety Division of the city of Detroit and we’ll be shutting down that business,” he said.
About four years ago, about half a dozen other people were wounded and one person slain during a shooting at the same location, White added.
“We’ve got some problems with this business,” he said. “It’s a problem for our community. We’re not saying incidents can’t happen, but it’s the responsibility of the ownership of the business to make sure that they put the necessary security provisions in place to make sure that these things don’t happen.”
