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Man Charged With Murder In Killing Of Detroit Synagogue Leader, Antisemitism Not Suspected

Samantha Woll, president of the board at the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue poses for a photo in Detroit, Oct. 13, 2022. Police say a person of interest has been arrested in connection with the fatal stabbing of the synagogue leader whose death occurred following the start of the Israel-Hamas war, leading to speculation the slaying could have been the result of antisemitism. The arrest is the second announced by the city’s police department since the Oct. 21 slaying of Samantha Woll who was found dead outside her near-downtown home hours after returning from a wedding. (David Guralnick/Detroit News via AP, file)

Authorities filed a murder charge Wednesday in the October slaying of a Detroit synagogue leader, alleging that she was killed by a stranger who broke into her home.

There was not a “shred of evidence” that Samantha Woll was killed as a result of antisemitism or any hate crime, prosecutor Kym Worthy said.

A 28-year-old Detroit man, Michael Manuel Jackson Bolanos, was charged with murder and two other crimes.

Samantha Woll, 40, was found dead outside her home, east of downtown Detroit, on Oct. 21, hours after returning from a wedding. Investigators believe she was attacked inside the residence.

“There are no facts to suggest this defendant knew Ms. Woll,” Worthy said.

Police said a person of interest was in custody over the weekend. A different person who was in custody was released in November.

“This was an extraordinarily sad and tragic case,” Worthy said. She added, “This takes time. We never want to rush to judgment.”

Police Chief James White said the suspect “came on our radar a few weeks ago” when investigators were trying to solve larcenies in the area.

“This is not a case you can solve like on television,” White said. “Hours and hours of evidence, hours and hours of video, of phone work, seven days a week.”

Woll was president of the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue. Besides her work for the synagogue, Woll had worked for Democratic U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin and on the political campaign of state Attorney General Dana Nessel.

(AP)



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