Prosecutors in Michigan have charged a 28-year-old man with breaking and murder in the October slaying of Detroit synagogue leader Samantha Woll.
Prosecutor Kym Worthy revealed during a press conference on Wednesday that Michael Manuel Jackson-Bolanos has been charged with murder and breaking.
The charges were filed on Wednesday after Detroit police apprehended a “person of interest” over the weekend. Last month, another “person of interest” was apprehended but freed without charge.
Woll, 40, was discovered dead outside her home east of Detroit on Oct. 21, only hours after returning from a wedding. Investigators suspect she was assaulted inside the house.
According to authorities, there were no traces of forced entry. After discovering her body at about 6:30 a.m., an anonymous caller informed emergency personnel.
Snippets of the emergency dispatch were heard on the police scanner early that morning, depicting a blood trail at the location and a mysterious fatality.
Woll was a well-respected synagogue president and political activist, having worked for Democratic U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin and state Attorney General Dana Nessel’s political campaigns.
According to Worthy, Jackson-Bolanos and Woll did not know each other, and there was no “shred of evidence” that her murder was motivated by antisemitism.
“This was an extraordinarily sad and tragic case,” Worthy said. “This takes time,” he continued. We never want to rush to conclusions.”
It was unclear whether Jackson-Bolanos had retained an attorney to speak on his behalf.