Michael Jackson-Bolanos pleads not guilty to Samantha Woll murder
Michael Jackson-Bolanos is thought to be a total stranger to Woll, the well-known Detroit synagogue leader
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A suspect has finally been arrested and charged with the murder of well-loved synagogue leader Samantha Woll almost two months after she was brutally stabbed to death at her home.
On Wednesday, 28-year-old Michael Jackson-Bolanos was charged with felony murder, home invasion and lying to police.
Local prosecutor Kym Worthy said at a press conference that the suspect had no prior connection to the victim and that the killing was not believed to be a hate crime.
Jackson-Bolanos maintained his innocence and entered a not-guilty plea on Wednesday.
At his arraignment, new details were revealed about Woll’s murder – and the evidence allegedly linking Mr Jackson-Bolanos to the crime scene.
Woll was stabbed eight times in the attack at her home in Lafayette Park on 21 October, prosecutors said. The attack began inside her home before she stumbled outside and collapsed in the street.
Prosecutors described her murder as a “crime of opportunity” when Mr Jackson-Bolanos was allegedly “prowling” the neighbourhood stealing from cars and came across her open front door.
Woll’s blood has allegedly been found on a jacket that the suspect was wearing on the night of the murder, the court heard.
Second person of interest reportedly a ‘random stranger’ with no connection to Samantha Woll
Investigators in Detroit told The Detroit News that the second person of interest taken into custody in the Samantha Woll murder investigation apparently has no known connection to her.
The second person of interest reportedly “is not an acquaintance of Woll’s and appears to be a random stranger,” according to police.
On Tuesday, Detroit police requested a warrant from the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office related to the investigation. That could be a move to bring charges against the person of interest, but as of Wednesday afternoon the request was still in process.
WATCH: Friends, family pray for closure in Samantha Woll case
28-year-old man charged in the murder of Samantha Woll
Michael Jackson Bolanos, a 28-year-old man has been charged in the muder of Samantha Woll.
The announcement was made Wednesday by the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office.
The prosecutor said there was no indiciation that Mr Bolanos knew Ms Woll or that the killing was a hate crime.
Man charged with murder of Detroit synagogue leader Samantha Woll
A suspect has been charged with the murder of Detroit synagogue leader Samantha Woll, almost two months after she was found brutally stabbed to death outside her home.
The charges against Michael Jackson Bolanos, 28, come three days after Detroit Police announced that a person of interest was in custody on Sunday, marking a major breakthrough in the case that has rumbled on unsolved since October and coming after a different man was arrested and released without charge last month.
“In an effort to ensure the integrity of this ongoing investigation, no further details will be released at this time. Additional information will be released in the near future,” police said in a statement on Sunday confirming the arrest.
On Tuesday – one day before the 72-hour deadline to charge or release the suspect – the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office said it had received a warrant request from Detroit police, indicating that charges were on the way.
READ MORE:
Man charged with murder of Detroit synagogue leader Samantha Woll
Charges mark a major breakthrough in the case that has rumbled on unsolved since October – coming after a different man was arrested and released without charge last month
‘The evidence is just not there’ Wayne County prosecutor says regarding hate crime motive
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said “the evidence is just not there” to suggest a hate crime occurred in the murder of Samantha Woll.
Ms Worthy held a press conference Wednesday evening to announce that Michael Jackson Bolanos, 28, had been charged as a suspect in the murder.
When questioned as to whether or not a hate crime had occurred, she said that investigators turned up no evidence to suggest as much.
Michael Jackson Bolanos received three charges in murder of Samantha Woll
Michael Jackson Bolanos, 28, was charged with three crimes in connection to the alleged murder of Samantha Woll.
Those charges are:
First degree homicide felony murder occurring during an attempted larceny and/or home invasion, assault while breaking and entering, and lying to a police officer.
Mr Bolanos was identified as a person of interest on Sunday and was taken into police custody. Investigators had a 72-hour time limit to either charge him or let him go. Charges were announced on Wednesday evening shortly before time expired.
Who is the suspect charged in the Samantha Woll stabbing?
A major breakthrough in the murder investigation of Detroit synagogue leader Samantha Woll has come, after police announced charges against a new suspect.
Here is what we know about 28-year-old Michael Miguel Jackson Bolanos.
Who is the suspect charged in the Samantha Woll stabbing?
The Detroit synagogue leader was found brutally stabbed to death in late October
What is a ‘person of interest’?
On Wednesday Detroit police named a suspect in the Samantha Woll murder investigation as Michael Manuel Jackson Bolanos. Mr Bolanos was recently classed as a “person of interest”.
“Person of interest” is a non-official term used by police to describe individuals they believe may have some noteworthy connection to an investigation.
Not all persons of interest go on to become suspects; there should be no presumption of wrongdoing if someone is listed as a person of interest. Some are simply witnesses or turn out to be dead ends for the investigation.
Police had not revealed the names of persons of interest identified in Ms Woll’s investigation until – like with Mr Bolanos– charges were brought.
One other “person of interest”, questioned by police over Woll’s death in November, was later released.
Who was Samantha Woll?
Woll led the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue since 2022.
She has been remembered by loved ones as a leader who worked to unite people through her interfaith work. Dawud Walid, president of the Council on American Islamic Relations’s Michigan chapter, called Woll’s death a “tragic loss” and praised her efforts to unite the Jewish and Muslim communities in Detroit.
“We are troubled by the apparent homicide of Samantha Woll, a beloved leader within her faith community in Metro Detroit,” Mr Walid said in a statement. “We also send our sincere condolences to her family and friends and to the Detroit Jewish community as a whole for the tragic loss.”
According to a 2017 article by The Detroit Jewish News, Woll was “instrumental in the founding of the Muslim-Jewish Forum of Detroit,” an alliance that helps build bonds between Jewish and Muslim youth.
In this photo released by Kimberly Bush, Samantha Woll, left, poses with Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel on 4 September, 2022
“By extending her hand and creating space for connection between Muslims and Jews, she has exemplified the values of healing the world,” the article read.
More than 1,000 people attended Woll’s funeral, the Detroit Free Press reports. Senator Stephanie Chang and AG Nessell were among the attendees who delivered heartfelt eulogies during the service.
“Sam did more for our community, our state, our world, our lives in her short time here on Earth than most will ever accomplish in 1,000 lifetimes,” Ms Nessel said in her eulogy, according to The New York Times.
Sen Chang also said that Woll had devoted her time to listening to Muslim and Jewish members of her community following the 7 October Hamas attack on Israel. Meanwhile, Woll’s sister Monica Woll Rosen shared with mourners how the slain synagogue president “fought for everyone.”
“You sent hearts to cheer people up and let them know you’re thinking of them — because you cared,” Ms Woll Rosen said, revealing that a friend of her late sister had received flowers from her on the day of her death, according to The New York Post.
“That was you, Sam,” Ms Woll Rosen added. “You didn’t even ask. You just sent flowers and signed 10 other people’s names because you knew it would make the receiver happy — and the others would have wanted to say happy birthday if they knew it was your birthday.”
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