Police report no evidence of hate crime in death of Detroit synagogue leader
FOX News' Garrett Tenney provides details on the case as police are investigating the stabbing death of synagogue president Samantha Woll.
Detroit police detained a second "person of interest" over the weekend as they continue to investigate Samantha Woll's killing.
Woll, a well-respected synagogue president and active force in local politics, was found dead outside of her home on Oct. 21, the morning after she attended a wedding.
Last month, law enforcement arrested a different "person of interest," who was released without being charged. Now a second person is in custody.
"[The Detroit Police Department] can confirm that a person of interest has been taken into custody in furtherance of the investigation into the murder of Samantha Woll," Detroit police told The New York Post in a statement. "In an effort to ensure the integrity of this ongoing investigation, no further details will be released at this time. Additional information will be released in the near future."
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Samantha Woll, right, with her friends. Kelly Neumann, center, told Fox News Digital, "Simply put, she wanted to find common ground for every walk of life." (Kelly Neumann)
Detroit police didn't release any other details about the second person in custody, including the suspect's identity, because no charges have been filed as of Monday morning.
Woll was the president of the Isaac Agree Downtown Detroit Synagogue at the time of her death.
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Fox News Digital's public records request for previous calls for service at the synagogue and her Lafayette Park home, among other records, was denied by police, citing an active investigation.
An appeal was filed.
Samantha Woll, left, was found murdered outside her home in October. ( )
This is the second time someone was detained by police. The first was released after 72 hours of questioning.
That's the longest law enforcement can detain someone without a court hearing, according to Michigan state law.
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Local defense lawyer Edward Bajoka, who isn't connected to the case, told Fox News Digital in an interview after the first arrest and release in November that the suspect was likely let go for one of two reasons.
"This tells me either police don't have enough evidence to proceed with formal criminal charges, or police interviewed him and cleared him," said Bajoka, an attorney with the Detroit-based Bajoka Law Group.
Bajoka said police would likely detain a suspect in a case like this with the hope they would make self-incriminating remarks.
Detroit police are investigating the murder of Samantha Woll. ( )
A map showing the route Samantha Woll may have taken from the wedding venue in Sterling Heights to her home in Detroit shortly before she was murdered in the early morning hours of Oct. 21. (Julia Bonavita for Fox News Digital)
How did Woll die?
Woll returned home from a wedding and was fatally stabbed inside her Lafayette Park home on Oct. 21. She stumbled outside and collapsed on her front lawn.
There were no signs of forced entry, according to police.
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An anonymous caller alerted emergency responders after finding her body around 6:30 a.m.
Snippets of the emergency dispatch were heard on the police scanner early that morning saying it was a suspicious death and described a trail of blood at the scene.
Police tape restricts access to the scene where Samantha Woll, Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue president, was found dead with two stab wounds in Detroit, Oct. 21, 2023. Police said the motive of the slaying was unknown. The killing came at a moment of escalating tensions in Jewish and Muslim communities across the United States over the Israel-Hamas conflict that has taken thousands of lives. (Sarah Rice/AFP via Getty Images)
The suspect's release added to the mystery surrounding the death of Woll, who was killed as tensions and antisemitic attacks were on the rise with the Israel-Hamas war raging overseas.
Detroit police said early on in the investigation that her death isn't believed to be fueled by antisemitism, but the scant amount of details have fueled speculation.
Friends remember Woll
Woll was a highly respected Jewish leader and politically active in Democrats' campaigns in Detroit and the surrounding area.
She was president of the board of directors at the Isaac Agree Downtown Detroit Synagogue and worked for high-profile Democrats, including Attorney General Dana Nessel and Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin.
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Kelly Neumann, one of Woll's friends who attended her funeral, told Fox News Digital after the first suspect was released that "anyone who knew Sam, loved Sam."
"To learn that a potential suspect was arrested and shortly after hear that the individual was released without any charges, is absolutely devastating news as we all hope and pray every day that closure and justice are attained after such a brutal, senseless act that cost a bright, exceptional woman to lose her life," Neumann said.
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