Several felony charges have been issued for a Kalamazoo area man in his 20s who will be arraigned in 57th District Court at 1:30 p.m. Thursday after he was arrested and shot by deputies Sunday morning in connection with a car theft and shooting spree.
The suspect’s name will not be released until he is arraigned, Allegan County Sheriff’s authorities said.
The man was wounded in a shootout with deputies in Manlius Township Sunday morning after he went on a car theft spree that began Saturday evening in downtown Martin. Authorities said he abandoned that vehicle and stole another from the Wayland area and crashed it in the Hopkins area. Deputies attempted a K-9 track, but were unable to located him.
But around 7 a.m. Sunday, the suspect had car-jacked another vehicle while armed with an AR-15 assault rifle and was reported to be in the area of 128th Avenue and 56th Street in Manlius Township and was shooting at houses. One resident of the area confronted him and they exchanged fire.
The suspect entered a residence and held the occupants at gun point while he attempted to steal another vehicle. Deputies confronted the suspect as he was attempting to leave the residence in their vehicle.
Authorities said the suspect refused to obey commands and was heading back to the house when deputies engaged him with gunfire. The suspect was injured and transported to a hospital with injuries; no deputes were injured.