Suspect dead after ramming vehicle into Detroit-area synagogue, source says

The suspect was found dead in the vehicle at the Temple Israel synagogue in West Bloomfield Township, Michigan, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said Thursday.

No kids and or staff were injured, the sheriff said. One of the security guards was taken to the hospital after they were hit by the vehicle, Bouchard said, but they are expected to recover.

Law enforcement are still working to clear the area, but they believe that they have accounted for everyone who was in the building, Bouchard said.

The suspect drove through the doors of the building. At this point, officials believe there was only one person in the car.

Security saw and engaged the person in gunfire, the sheriff said.

After the vehicle hit the building, security opened gunfire, killing the suspect, a law enforcement official told CNN.

Emergency responders found what appeared to be a large amount of explosives in the back of the vehicle, according to multiple law enforcement officials briefed on the scene.

Law enforcement is working to clear the vehicle of any explosives, Bouchard said. That effort is a “work in progress,” he said.

“We’ve got a significant number of bomb dogs on site, bomb techs on site,” the sheriff said.

Temple Israel is located in West Bloomfield Township, which is about 25 miles northwest of Detroit.

Extra security will be added around Jewish spaces in the West Bloomfield Township area, Bouchard said.

The sheriff said he had been talking to other local law enforcement officials about the potential of violence for the last two weeks. Because of this incident, the synagogue was prepared and had security who “engaged the threat,” Bouchard said.

“All Jewish facilities in the area are going to have a lot of extra presence around it until we figure this out,” he said.

Michigan State Police Second District troopers are “also increasing patrols at other places of worship,” it said on X.

Against the backdrop of wars in the Middle East, antisemitism has surged globally, according to the Anti-Defamation League. The incident in Michigan comes amid a succession of attacks on members of the Jewish community in the US, and Jewish institutions such as synagogues and schools have implemented tighter security systems.

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