Reports of shots fired lead VBT police to chase, drugs, arrests

Van Buren Township Deputy Police Chief Joshua Monte provides a summary of an involved incident that began with many 911 calls reporting shots fired. One neighbor told the Independent he counted eight shots.
On Thursday, June 12, at about 5:30 p.m., the Van Buren Township Dispatch Center received multiple 911 calls reporting shots fired at a residence in the 41000 block of Savage Road.
While officers were en route, dispatchers were informed that two individuals had fled the scene in a U-Haul van and were armed with long guns.
“I cannot say enough about the professionalism, proficiency, and quick thinking of our dispatch staff during this incident,” Deputy Chief Monte said. “While juggling multiple 911 calls, dispatching emergency medical services, and coordinating police response, they also actively searched our Flock camera system for any sign of the U-Haul van.
“Their efforts paid off. They were able to guide officers to the area where the suspects had last been seen,” he said.
Responding officers located the U-Haul just as the suspects were attempting to enter another vehicle. A pursuit followed, eventually leading to the area of I-94 and US-23, where the suspects lost control and crashed. After a foot chase, both suspects were taken into custody and a weapon was recovered.
Back at the Savage Road residence, officers recovered multiple shell casings and took another individual into custody, along with another weapon.
Deputy Chief Monte said later, police received a call from Corewell Hospital in Wayne reporting that a subject had arrived at the emergency room with multiple gunshot wounds.
A few hours after that, police received another notification — this one in response to a nationwide Law Enforcement Information Network (LEIN) alert — from Wood County Hospital in Bowling Green, Ohio. A second subject had checked in there with multiple gunshot wounds.
After reviewing a significant amount of digital forensic evidence, and follow-up investigations conducted by VBT detectives and officers, it was determined that four armed individuals traveled from North Carolina to Van Buren Township with the intent to rob two people at the Savage Road residence. During the attempted robbery, one of the suspects and one of the intended victims were shot.
A tremendous amount of marijuana and THC paraphernalia was recovered at the location, Monte said.
“We’re still working to confirm who actually owns the Savage Road home, as it appears nobody was living at the home,” he said. “The investigation with this case is still active and on-going. All the involved suspects have been either been identified or are in custody. We anticipate additional charges, including the extradition of involved individuals from North Carolina.”
He said none of the individuals involved in this incident are residents of Van Buren Township.
Monte said, “This was truly a best-case scenario for both our first responders and our community, given how dangerous the situation was from the outset.
“Chief Jason Wright and I are extremely proud of the professionalism and dedication shown by our dispatchers, officers, and detectives. Thanks to their quick and coordinated actions, a potentially much worse outcome was avoided,” Monte said.
In the day after the June 12 incident, Detroit media reported that a 54-year-old man was injured in the shooting. They also reported a 130-mile-per-hour chase on I-94 into Washtenaw County. When the fleeing driver tried to turn onto M-23 there was a crash. No one was injured and there were two arrests in the tree line next to the freeway interchange.
Van Buren police were joined in the chase by police from Pittsfield Township, the Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Office and Ann Arbor, according to media reports.
Arrested were Craig Nathaniel Croom, 24, of Clayton, NC, and Jaylen Malik Paschal, 21, of Greensboro, NC.
34th District Court Chief Judge Brian A. Oakley video-arraigned the two in custody on June 16 on identical charges of fleeing and eluding a police officer 4th degree (a felony) and assaulting / resisting / obstructing a police officer on June 12 in Van Buren Township. The probable cause conference was set for June 25 and bond is $500,000 cash or surety for each defendant.
Monte said more charges are expected.