‘Boom boom boom’; Quiet Sterling Heights neighborhood disturbed by officer-involved shooting

STERLING HEIGHTS, Mich. (FOX 2) – A quiet neighborhood in Sterling Heights quickly became the center of a police-involved shooting after officers fired at a suspect fleeing law enforcement in a stolen car sped directly at them.

The suspect driver was struck multiple times but is expected to survive.

An investigation is now underway to dissect the chaos that led police on a wild pursuit late Thursday night.

One neighbor said all you could hear was gunfire.

“Ten gunshots and that’s literally all you could hear, just ‘boom boom boom boom boom boom boom,’” she said. “I dropped to the floor.”

For Alyssa Hiller, the frightening part was the proximity to a scene the community isn’t familiar with.

“To know that happened so close is scary,” she said.

It began on 15 Mile near Carbon Drive late Thursday when police attempted a traffic stop on a Chrysler 300 with tinted windows and its lights off. Instead, the driver took off, reaching speeds of 60 mph while heading into a nearby subdivision.

From there, they turned toward Forrer Court and Amsterdam where a dead end road was waiting for the suspect. Police said the suspect parked at the end of the road and they began to address them when the vehicle started driving at them.

“The vehicle attempted to flee, putting our officers in danger,” said Sterling Heights Police Lt. Mario Bastianelli. “One of the officers opened fire on the vehicle, striking the suspect multiple times. He was injured, he was immediately provided aid by our officers.”

Now in stable condition, the suspect is awaiting charges.

Police learned after the fact the vehicle had come back stolen. Michigan State Police are now overseeing the investigation into the shooting.

“I hope nothing like this ever happens again in this neighborhood and hopefully none of us and the children in the neighborhood are too affected by what happened,” said Hiller.