DETROIT – Police are searching for a person of interest after three men were found dead inside a Southwest Detroit home in what investigators described as a brutal attack

The investigation began around 12:45 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 18, when officers responded to a missing person call. That missing person was later identified as one of the men found dead inside the home on Edsel Street, near Francis Avenue.

When officers arrived, they encountered a surviving witness who told police he had been struck twice in the back of the head with a hammer at the home the day before, according to Detroit Police Assistant Chief Charles Fitzgerald, who provided an update on the case on Thursday afternoon. At that point, he left the location and returned to the home later. You can watch the full police update in the video at the top of this article.

After entering the residence, officers discovered the bodies of three men.

Police said the oldest victim was 72 years old. The other two victims were 66 and 65. One of the men was the primary resident of the home. All three men had prior criminal records.

Investigators said all three victims suffered blunt force trauma, and each had stab wounds. They were found in the basement, covered in “old dirty clothing,” and one of the men was found covered in a carpet and old clothing, according to police.

“It was a brutal scene inside,” Fitzgerald said. “Just awful.”

Police are waiting for autopsies from the Wayne County Medical Examiner’s Office to determine the exact causes of death. Police believe the killings occurred sometime between Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning.

Authorities are searching for a man described as approximately 31 to 32 years old, between 5 feet 5 inches and 5 feet 7 inches tall, with dreadlocks. The surviving witness told investigators the attack appeared to involve a single suspect.

Police have not established a motive yet, and said it is unknown what links the person of interest to the victims at this time.

While there has been speculation about possible drug activity, police said there is currently no evidence confirming that.

Officials noted that the resident was known to allow multiple people into the residence, but stressed that the investigation remains ongoing.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the Detroit Police Department at 313-596-2200 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-Speak Up.

Police say they will continue to release updates as more information becomes available.

Police discovered the bodies of three men in a southwest Detroit home on Wednesday.

Officers responded to a missing persons report in the 3100 block of South Edsel Street at about 12:50 p.m., Detroit police Cmdr. Rebecca McKay said in a video provided by the department.

At the scene, an person unrelated to the initial missing persons report approached police and told officers they had been assaulted inside a nearby home, McKay said.

Police entered that home, where they found the bodies of three men, about age 50 or older, in the basement, McKay said. It appeared they had been “brutally assaulted” at the home, she said.

Police vehicles parked on Edsel Street, along with a Michigan State Police crime scene vehicle. Police tape marked off the scene.

Several people stood nearby, watching authorities at the scene, but declined to comment. 

None of the bodies have been identified, police said, and it wasn’t immediately clear whether any were the subject of the initial missing persons report.

Authorities haven’t released further details; the incident remains under investigation.

mreinhart@detroitnews.com

@max_detroitnews