U.S. Marshals capture Sumpter shooter in Tulsa

By Rosemary K. Otzman
Independent Editor
A man who is accused of shooting his brother two or three times with a shotgun in Sumpter Township on Sunday and then fleeing was captured by U.S. Marshals in Tulsa, OK on Tuesday.
Sumpter Township officials say once they put the picture of the missing shooter out on Nixle and Facebook on Monday, they got a firm tip that ultimately led to his arrest.
On Tuesday afternoon, Sumpter Township Police Detective John Toth said the complicated case is still unwinding and so the whole story can’t be told yet.
Detective Toth said Jared Dean-Meeks Ritchie was struggling in his Texas home, so his brother let him stay with him in his home in the 23000 block of Elwell Road, Sumpter, where he had moved earlier.
On Sunday at about 5:35 p.m., Sumpter Police were summoned to the fire hall on Sumpter Road where the victim was. The victim had been shot two or three times with a shotgun and he identified his brother as the shooter.
Det. Toth said he gave police key pieces of evidence and said his brother was still at the home.
Det. Toth, Chief Jim Pierce, and Captain Eric Luke contacted the Michigan State Police SWAT for assistance and they brought robots and different equipment to help apprehend the armed man.
Det. Toth said they got a search warrant and secured a lot of evidence, but the house was empty.
They later learned while they were staging and waiting for MSP, the man slipped out the back and fled.
One of the MSP troopers worked with the U.S. Marshals, who began to assist Sumpter. Det. Toth said the Nixle post worked out with an incredible lead, which Sgt. Chris McGlynn worked and got solid information.
Ritchie was taken into custody by the U.S. Marshal Service as the Greyhound bus he was using to flee in made a stop in Tulsa, OK, on its way to Houston. Once extradited back to Michigan he will face charges of assault with intent to murder, armed robbery, and possible other charges.
The victim was hospitalized in serious but stable condition.