Ten more charges each for two suspects in VBT June shootings

The two North Carolina men who were involved in a June shooting incident on Savage Road in Van Buren Township are now facing 10 more charges each than initially leveled.
Craig Nathaniel Croom, 24, of Clayton, NC, and Jaylen Malik Paschal, 21, of Greensboro, NC, were video-arraigned in custody on June 16 on identical charges of fleeing and eluding a police officer – 4th degree (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 set at $500,000 cash or surety each.
On June 25 they both were present by video from the Wayne County Jail. The probable cause conference for the co-defendants was adjourned until July 2.
Both defendants waived their preliminary exams and were bound over to circuit court for July 9 arraignments on the information. Calendar conferences were set for July 11. A motion hearing is July 22 and a pretrial Aug. 8. That was reset for Sept. 19.
The defense attorney for Croom asked District Judge Teresa Patton for a reduction in bond because his client has no criminal history and is not a flight risk. Judge Patton denied the request based on the facts in the case but said he could request bond reduction at circuit court.
On Aug. 27, both defendants were present by zoom at district court from the Wayne County Jail for probable cause conferences on 10 additional charges in the June 12 incident. The charges were approved by the Wayne County Prosecutor on Aug. 6 and in-custody arraignment was Aug. 13.
New charges are two counts of assault with intent to murder, two counts of assault with intent to do bodily harm less than murder (strangulation), one count of carrying dangerous weapons with unlawful intent, and five felony firearm charges. Cash bond is $500,000 each.
A preliminary exam was set for Sept. 3.
Van Buren Township Deputy Police Chief Joshua Monte had provided the summary of the 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 at the time. “The investigation with this case is still active and on-going.” He said none of the individuals involved in this incident are residents of Van Buren Township.
On 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.