(NewsNation) — Police have taken a person of interest into custody in the case of a Jewish leader who was found stabbed outside her home in Detroit.
It’s been 51 days since the brutal murder of Samantha Woll, a prominent Jewish leader in Detroit who led the Isaac Agree Downtown Detroit Synagogue.
Police are being very tightlipped about the person they have taken into custody. They told NewsNation nothing more than what was already released in a statement.
“DPD can confirm that a person of interest has been taken into custody in furtherance of the investigation into the murder of Samantha Woll. 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,” the statement read.
The timing of Woll’s death led to speculation the case could be a hate crime but police cautioned the public against jumping to conclusions, saying they had no indication her death was motivated by antisemitism.
A local crime reporter with the Detroit Press reported this person is a total stranger but NewsNation sources have said that might not be the case and the person in custody did know Woll.
Under Michigan law, police have 48 hours to charge the person or let them go.
Steve Dolunt, a retired Detroit police officer who served for 31 years, said the new information seems like the case is going in a different direction.
“Maybe they were going in that direction the whole time, but didn’t want us to know,” he said. “The public doesn’t always immediately know. But it’s definitely a twist of events.”
Dolunt also said that, to his knowledge, no warrant requested had been submitted as of Monday morning.
“But they have 48 hours, they’re probably getting all their Is dotted and Ts crossed to present information on this person,” he said.
If a warrant is granted, it’s possible there will be an arrest in the case. If not, it’s back to square one.