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detroit — Police have a new suspect in custody Sunday in the killing of local Jewish leader Samantha Woll, two sources familiar with the investigation told The Detroit News.
The man is not an acquaintance of Woll’s and appears to be a random stranger, the sources said. The suspect is not the same man who was released exactly one month ago after Detroit police held him for 72 hours as part of the Woll investigation.
The development marks an apparent breakthrough in a high-profile homicide case involving a well-known, politically connected religious leader.
The 40-year-old Woll was stabbed to death Oct. 21 inside her home in the Lafayette Park neighborhood on Detroit’s east side, police said. After the attack, Woll stumbled out of her house and collapsed on her front lawn, according to investigators.
The case made national headlines amid speculation that Woll’s killing may have been related to her prominence in the Jewish community. But Police Chief James White has insisted that there’s no evidence linking Woll’s killing to ongoing tensions about Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza, or that the stabbing was motivated by antisemitism or the victim’s position as president of the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue.
The sources reiterated Sunday that there is no evidence that Woll’s death was a hate crime.
During a press conference three days after the homicide, White assured reporters from local and national media outlets that the evidence didn’t point to a hate crime.
Last month, four sources told The News that the previous man in custody was an acquaintance of Woll’s who was arrested in Kalamazoo after giving a statement to police about the killing, although the sources said they didn’t think the statement alone would be enough to bring charges.
That suspect’s defense lawyers confirmed his release last month as investigators continued looking into an ambiguous statement the suspect made to police about the Oct. 21 killing, four police sources told The News.
Woll’s murder sent shockwaves through Metro Detroit’s Jewish community, as well as Michigan Democratic political circles where she was active.
Woll previously worked as deputy district director for US Rep. Elissa Slotkin of Holly and had worked on past campaigns of Attorney General Dana Nessel and state Sen. Stephanie Chang of Detroit.
rsnell@detroitnews.com
ghunter@detroitnews.com
X: @robertsnellnews
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