Suspect in attack at Michigan synagogue is dead, ATF official says : NPR

Law enforcement respond near Temple Israel following reports of an active shooter on Thursday in West Bloomfield, Mich.

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Emily Elconin/Getty Images

The special agent in charge of the Detroit field office of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, James Deir, says the suspect in today’s active shooting at Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Mich, is dead.

Speaking to WXYZ-TV, Deir said authorities who responded to the scene have been told the suspect has died.

Scores of law enforcement officers and emergency personnel responded following reports of an active shooter this afternoon at Temple Israel.

Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard said during a brief news conference that synagogue security officers had “engaged the threat” that apparently started with a vehicle ramming into the building. Shots were fired, and a fire continues to burn in the large complex. Images from a TV helicopter showed thick, black smoke billowing in several places from the building.

Bouchard said no one is “confirmed hurt, except potentially the shooter.” He could not say whether there are any links to terrorism. Since the U.S. and Israel-led war in Iran began, there’s been heightened concern about retaliation. Bouchard asked residents within one mile of Temple Israel to shelter in place.

This synagogue, like nearly all Jewish places of worship in the U.S., has its own security officers. It also operates a school, and parents were rushing to a nearby reunification center.

In a post on X, the FBI director, Kash Patel, says federal agents were on the scene “responding to the apparent vehicle ramming and active shooter situation.”

The Michigan State Police said on social media that it’s “increasing patrols at other places of worship in the area.”

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer called the incident “heartbreaking,” saying Michigan’s “Jewish community should be able to live and practice their faith in peace.” In a post on X, the governor said, “Antisemitism and violence have no place in Michigan.”