Connect with us

Michigan

Michigan synagogue car-ramming suspect bought $2,000 worth of fireworks before attack

Published

on

Michigan synagogue car-ramming suspect bought ,000 worth of fireworks before attack


Two days before federal authorities say Ayman Mohamad Ghazali carried out Thursday’s antisemitic terror attack at a synagogue outside Detroit, the driver in the car-ramming violence allegedly walked out of a fireworks store with more than $2,000 worth of explosives.

Speaking exclusively with NBC News, Phantom Fireworks said that a person who registered as Ayman Ghazali visited one of the company’s Detroit-area stores at 1:39 p.m. March 10 and spent about 45 minutes inside.

Days later, Ghazali allegedly rammed a pickup into Temple Israel in West Bloomfield Township, setting off a fire at the synagogue where a preschool attended by more than 100 children was in session, officials said. None of the children or staff members were injured.

Ghazali, a Dearborn Heights resident, was killed by the synagogue’s security team following the attack.

Advertisement

The FBI on Friday said that Ghazali was “forensically confirmed” as the assailant. Prior, officials said they believed he was the synagogue attacker, but were awaiting forensics as the driver’s body was badly burned.

Ghazali had no previous criminal history, no registered weapons, and he had never been the subject of a FBI investigation, Jennifer Runyan, the Special Agent in Charge of the Detroit field office, said in a news briefing Friday.

She did not speak on a motive for the attack, but the FBI has previously said it is investigating the incident as a “targeted act of violence against the Jewish community.”

Officials did not mention what caused the fire, but in the vehicle, investigators found multiple gas canisters and consumer mortar tubes that would be used to launch fireworks, according to two senior officials briefed on the investigation.

The fireworks purchase was one of several facts about Ghazali’s background leading up to the attack that came into focus Friday.

Advertisement

Ghazali, a U.S. citizen originally from Lebanon, lost several family members in an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon last week, according to local officials in Michigan. The strike killed two of his brothers, who were known to be members of Hezbollah, and his niece and nephew, an official told NBC News.

Investigators are looking into Ghazali’s possible ties to suspected members of Hezbollah in Lebanon, according to a source familiar with the matter. He had been questioned several times about these possible contacts upon his return to the U.S. from overseas, the source said.

In recent weeks, hundreds of people in Lebanon have been killed and more than 750,000 people displaced amid escalating Israeli attacks, which were launched after Hezbollah struck Israel in retaliation for the war on Iran.

In Michigan, Alan Zoldan, Phantom Fireworks’ executive vice president, said the store employee who rang up Ghazali’s order recalled that “he certainly had no appearance of nervousness.”

“He was going to be celebrating Eid, you know, the end of the Ramadan,” Zoldan said. Eid al-Fitr, a holiday celebrated by Muslims to mark the end of the fast, is next week.

Advertisement

Phantom Fireworks said it requires all customers to register their identification before making a purchase. After the synagogue attack, the company found Ghazali’s name and address in its records, which it said federal investigators requested by subpoena.

Video Phantom Fireworks shared with NBC News shows the man who identified himself as Ghazali, 41, walking into the store and registering his identification at the front desk before he starts shopping. About 15 minutes later, he walks up to the register with a mostly full cart, fills out paperwork and begins checking out. Once all the items are scanned and on the counter, he turns the cart around and continues shopping for roughly 5 more minutes.

About 20 minutes later, footage shows the man pushing the cart out of the store to a waiting pickup. He loads the truck bed, hands the cart off to the store employee and drives off.

Ghazali bought roughly 30 different types of items from Phantom Fireworks, including a “finale rack” product that the manufacturer says should be lit with people at least 100 yards away.
Ghazali bought roughly 30 different types of items from Phantom Fireworks, including a “finale rack” product that the company says should be lit with people at least 100 yards away.Courtesy Phantom Fireworks

Ghazali bought roughly 20 types of items from Phantom Fireworks, including a “finale rack” product that the company says should be lit with people at least 100 yards away.

It’s not clear if fireworks purchased from this store were used in the synagogue attack.

The company also said that a $2,000 purchase is not inherently noteworthy.

Advertisement

“For our, you know, biggest customers that are going big at home — which we have so many of — spending $2,000, $5,000, $10,000 happens repeatedly … $5,000 and $10,000 is actually pretty common,” said Phantom Fireworks vice president Jessi Dragoiu.

Dearborn Heights Mayor Mo Baydoun condemned the attack Friday, saying: “We do know that the individual had recently suffered devastating and personal losses overseas due to an Israeli air strike on his family’s home in Lebanon, leaving two children dead. Grief is real, and it’s heartbreaking, but let me be clear, that is not an excuse.”

Dearborn Heights police chief Michael Guzowski said any relevant records and background information were shared with investigators. He said there’s no credible information indicating an ongoing threat to residents and the city has increased monitoring as a precaution.

In a news briefing on Friday, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer called the attack an act of antisemitism.

“It was hate, plain and simple,” Whitmer said at the briefing. “We will fight this ancient and rampant evil. We will stand together as we do it, and we will call it out. We must lower the rhetoric in this state and in this country, especially at this moment where we have seen such a rise in anti-Semitism and more attacks on the Jewish community.”

Advertisement

The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office referred NBC News to the FBI. The FBI declined to comment on this story.



Source link

Michigan

Michigan’s upcoming Aug. 4 primary: What’s on my ballot?

Published

on

Michigan’s upcoming Aug. 4 primary: What’s on my ballot?


play

In Michigan’s Tuesday, Aug. 4 primary, voters will set the stage for the November general election, picking the Democratic and Republican nominees who will face off in the fall in major races, including nationally watched U.S. Senate and governor’s races.

Here’s a look at what’s on the ballot:

Advertisement

Key races on Michigan’s primary ballot

  • Governor: Gov. Gretchen Whitmer cannot run again due to term limits. The Democratic primary includes Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson. The Republican primary includes former Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox, U.S. Rep. John James, of Shelby Township and businessman Perry Johnson. (Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt, R-Porter Township, is on the ballot, but he has dropped out of the race and endorsed James.)
  • U.S. Senate: The Democratic primary to represent Michigan in the U.S. Senate includes former Wayne County and Detroit health director Abdul El-Sayed and U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens, of Birmingham. (State Sen. Mallory McMorrow, D-Royal Oak, dropped out of the race but still appears on the ballot.) The GOP primary is uncontested, with only former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, of White Lake, on the ballot. U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township, decided not to seek reelection, creating an open race to fill his seat.
  • U.S. House of Representatives: Michigan has 13 congressional districts. Incumbents are seeking reelection in all but two of them. With James running for governor, there is an open race to fill his seat for Michigan’s 10th Congressional District. (Republican Robert Lulgjuraj – a Macomb County prosecutor – has ended his campaign in the 10th District, but his name still appears on the ballot.) There is also an open seat for Michigan’s 11th Congressional District, with Stevens running for U.S. Senate.
  • Michigan Senate: All 38 seats in the Michigan Senate are up for election this year. Some metro Detroit voters will vote for the first time in newly drawn districts following court-ordered changes.
  • Michigan House of Representatives: All 110 seats in the Michigan House of Representatives are also up for election this year.
  • Local races and proposals: Voters across the state will also weigh in on races for local offices and proposals.

You can’t vote in both primaries

Unlike presidential primaries in Michigan, voters in the state do not need to request a specific party’s ballot to vote in the upcoming primary. The partisan section of the August primary ballot features Democratic and Republican sections. Voters must pick one party’s primary. For instance, a voter cannot vote for a Democrat in the U.S. Senate primary and a Republican in the gubernatorial primary.

Where can I find a sample ballot?

Michigan voters can go to michigan.gov/vote and click on “What’s on the ballot?” where they will be directed to a page to enter details about their voting jurisdiction to view a sample ballot. Alternatively, they can enter their voter information on the “Am I registered page?” to view a “Ballot preview.”

When can I vote in Michigan’s election?

Michigan voters can request an absentee ballot now. Early voting will run statewide Saturday, July 25 through Sunday, Aug. 2, but communities may offer longer early voting periods. Check out the “Where do I go to Early Vote?” page on michigan.gov/vote to find early voting locations.

Voters can also vote in person on Tuesday, Aug. 4 from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Voters in line to vote by 8 p.m. will be allowed to cast a ballot. Voters voting absentee must return their ballot by 8 p.m. on Election Day. Military and overseas ballots postmarked by Election Day will still count.

Advertisement

Where is my polling place?

Voters can find their polling place at michigan.gov/vote and head to the “Where is my polling place?” page and enter their voter details.

Contact Clara Hendrickson at chendrickson@freepress.com or 313-296-5743.



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Michigan

Michigan AG Dana Nessel visits Kalamazoo to address rising energy prices

Published

on

Michigan AG Dana Nessel visits Kalamazoo to address rising energy prices


Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel was in Kalamazoo on Thursday to discuss rising energy prices in the state.

She is pointing the finger at the Trump administration, and the federal push to keep a local coal plant in operation.

J.H. Campbell Plant in West Olive was built in the 1960s, and was planned to close down. Nessel said it’s costing Michiganders every day.

“Consumers Energy cannot use long-term coal contracts to save money, and the aging facility requires extensive repairs, so the plant costs some more to operate than it could ever recoup in profits,” Nessel said.

Advertisement

“And that’s a whopping $615,000 loss every single day that that plant is forced to stay open,” she added.

The U.S. Department of Energy issued another emergency order in May keeping the facility online through mid-August. The plant had originally been scheduled to close in May 2025.

The Department of Energy said the decision is centered on energy reliability, though Nessel said coal-fired plants are a major cause of climate change.

“I think since we’re here to talk in part about the J. H. Campbell plant, it’s worthy to note that coal fired plants are the single single largest source of emissions that cause and create climate change, such as what’s affecting us right now,” Nessel said in regards to the hazardous pollutants that blanketed most of Michigan on Thursday.



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Michigan

Michigan health expert talks impact of Canadian wildfire smoke: There’s really a long list of who is at risk”

Published

on

Michigan health expert talks impact of Canadian wildfire smoke: There’s really a long list of who is at risk”


The current air quality in Michigan has doctors, especially cardiologists, concerned for their patients.

Advertisement

Dr. Herb Aronow, the chair of heart and vascular health at Henry Ford Health, says unhealthy air affects everyone with heart and vascular diseases, even those who haven’t been diagnosed yet.

“There’s really a long list of who is at risk,” said Aronow.

That’s why Aronow wants people to be aware and prepared. While many may think breathing in unhealthy air will only impact your lungs, Aronow says wildfires produce microscopic particles that can get into your blood.

“Once they are there, they create problems with inflammation and other mechanisms and we all know inflammation leads to heart disease and can lead to those with heart disease to have events,” said Aronow.

Aronow says this could lead to someone needing emergency care, but there are ways to protect yourself.

Advertisement

“If you have a symptom that’s suspicious for heart disease, you need to seek attention immediately, and more often than not, that’s means you need to call 911,” said Aronow.

The best way to avoid harmful air is to stay in an air-conditioned space. If you have an indoor air filter that can also reduce the poor air coming into your home.

“If you already have heart or blood vessel disease and you need to be outdoors for some reason is that you can wear a N95 respirator an N95 mask. Those are very effective,” said Aronow.

If you must go outside, check the air quality at the location you are at or plan to visit.

Advertisement



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading
Advertisement

Trending