Police: Victim in fatal shooting identified; man and suspect were co-workers
Ypsilanti police gather evidence where Bhagavan Yashura Allen, 29, was fatally shot on South Grove Street Wednesday afternoon.
Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com
- Updated story: Police: Victim was fatally shot by co-worker after fight about job performance
- Earlier story: Shooting victim dies; police seek suspect
The man shot and killed in Ypsilanti Wednesday afternoon has been identified as 29-year-old Superior Township resident Bhagavan Yashura Allen, Ypsilanti police confirmed Thursday morning.
The suspect in the homicide is a 34-year-old Ypsilanti Township man and a co-worker of Allen's, police said. The two worked at a business near South Grove and South streets where the fatal shooting occurred around 4 p.m. Wednesday, Ypsilanti police said.
When police arrived, Allen was suffering from numerous gunshot wounds. He was transported to St. Joseph Mercy Hospital, but died on the way, according to a news release.
The weapon appears to have been a .45 caliber semi-automatic handgun. Police think the two men had argued earlier in the day. When they met up after work, the 34-year-old man allegedly shot Allen multiple times.
The 34-year-old has not been arrested yet, but police continue to search for him.
Witnesses have described the suspect as a black man about 6 feet 4 inches tall, weighing about 240 pounds. He was wearing dark jeans, a dark black or blue hooded sweatshirt and a light blue do-rag, they said.
If you have any additional information regarding this case please contact Det. Sgt. T.C. Eberts at (734) 482-9878 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAKUP (773-2587).
John Counts covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at johncounts@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.
Comments
YpsiVeteran
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 4:01 p.m.
How many people complaining that the police have not yet released the suspect's name were also complaining that the police released and this site printed the name of the A2 pediatrician who was accused of peeping into his neighbor's house, and continued to complain about his name being out there, even after he was arrested and arraigned, because "he hasn't been convicted of anything." This crime isn't even 24 hrs. old, and there are lots of reasons to not what a suspect's name in the paper yet.
YpsiVeteran
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 4:02 p.m.
Correction, "...to not *want* a suspect's name..."
Billy Bob Schwartz
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 3:40 p.m.
I don't understand the withholding of the name. He knows his description is out there. He knows they know where he worked. Don't you think he will expect police on his tail? What if there is someone who knows this guy and knows where he might be, but doesn't think it's the same guy. The description does fit a lot of people in the area. Come on. You released he victim's name. Let's have the suspect's name.
Sam S Smith
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 3:35 p.m.
Special thoughts for comfort and prayers for Mr. Allen's family and loved ones! Prayers for the family and loved ones of the perpetrator!
Honest Abe
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 3:02 p.m.
YPD needs to make the suspects name and information available... STAT.
AlwaysLate
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 2:41 p.m.
It makes no sense that the suspect's name has not been released. Unless he is "connected" in some way to local politics...or the Police Department.
YpsiVeteran
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 6:18 p.m.
Nope. But here's something else to consider. Emotions in families, of both victim and suspect, can run pretty high at times like these. In some situations, a suspect's family might be vulnerable to retaliation from family members of a victim. Sometimes a suspect's name is withheld to protect innocent family members, to keep them from becoming targets.
AlwaysLate
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 6:03 p.m.
Sounds like you have a lot of experience with this sort of thing. Are you on the job...?
YpsiVeteran
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 3:41 p.m.
I love it when people ascribe normal thought and logic processes to people crazy enough to shoot and kill someone over nothing. You might think he's smart enough to "know he's being pursued," but you might be shocked to know how many times some animal does something like this, then goes home and is STUNNED to find the police actually know who he is and have been looking for him.
AlwaysLate
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 3:08 p.m.
YpsiVet... He shot and killed a guy. I think he knows he's being pursued. And why can't he be related to someone within the Police Department or City Government?
YpsiVeteran
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 2:54 p.m.
Wow...why didn't the reporter think of that? The blue do-rag and the hoodie....obviously the suspect is the chief of police, or maybe the mayor, and the "investigation" is all a big cover-up. The police never withhold the name of a suspect for any other reasons -- like to avoid tipping them off that they are being pursued -- it must be a conspiracy.
a2cents
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 1:46 p.m.
Fact: guns make it easy
YpsiVeteran
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 4:45 p.m.
A2cents, so do knives and bats and explosives. It's not the tool used, it's the mind of the person wielding it that we have to be worried about.
YpsiVeteran
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 4:42 p.m.
IAYV2, calling names lends great credibility to your arguments. Well done. I think most people would agree that homicide rises above the level of "social problem," and but is often the end result of a number of different social problems that are prevalent to varying degrees in different communities and cultures. I also think that most people would agree that no social problems, regardless of their nature or severity, serve as an excuse for the act of homicide. As to your argument that prison is not a deterrent, a subject not mention in my original post at all, you are wrong. There is no "evidence" that prison does not deter crime. Prison is the ultimate deterrent. Wiser people than either of us, however, debate endlessly about whether prison results in rehabilitation, which is not the same thing as deterrence. There can be no arguing the fact that someone in prison is completely deterred (prevented) from committing any other crimes against society while he or she is incarcerated.
Ricebrnr
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 4:27 p.m.
"Fact: guns make it easy" to defend yourself against disparity of force. "Police-community relations could be improved in Ypsilanti and other S.E. Michigan communities" Having been through both the Washtenaw County Sheriff and the Ann Arbor Police Citizen Police Academy programs, I think you would be very surprised at the amount of programs and the efforts made by the Law and the Courts. "How about reading the evidence on the lack of deterrence capabilities of prison" Many focus on deterrence and rehabilitation as the raison d'etre for prisons and yet conveniently forget that the PRIMARY reason for a prison is to segregate criminals from law abiding society.
ImAnYpsiVeteran2
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 4:22 p.m.
@YpsiVeteran...Perhaps it is *I* who should let YOUR post speak for itself, as clearly you are incapable of comprehending what a social problem is. As an example from a scholarly source: "Homicide, the killing of one human being by another human being, has always been a concern in human society. It is a major social problem in the United States..." Stop acting like a know-it-all and use your critical thinking skills!
YpsiVeteran
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 4:11 p.m.
Also, ImAnYpsiVeteran2, perhaps you didn't learn this as part of your "education," but homicide is not a "social problem," and objection to homicide is not limited to your obviously bigoted idea of the "white middle-class."
YpsiVeteran
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 4:07 p.m.
Wow. Way to jump to wild conclusions and put words in my mouth that I never uttered. Find some other steps to climb up on your soapbox, will you? Nothing in my post stated or suggested anything you're ranting about, and your assumptions about my background and beliefs are so far off as to be amusing. As far as your "education" goes, I'll let your post speak for itself.
Davidian
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 4:05 p.m.
Fact: Machetes killed a million people in Rwanda.
ImAnYpsiVeteran2
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 4:01 p.m.
@YpsiVeteran: "I wonder what argument there could be with the idea that someone who would do something like this is of no benefit to society." I certainly hope you're not a veteran of the police department, as attitudes like yours are precisely why 1) Police-community relations could be improved in Ypsilanti and other S.E. Michigan communities, and 2) because the attitude of "lock up everyone forever" isn't the answer to the problem. How about reading the evidence on the lack of deterrence capabilities of prison. Or how about the fact that holding the entire rest of the world to your (most likely) white, middle class values indicates your ignorance of the root causes of social problems for people who aren't exactly like yourself? When you have something educated to say, let us all know, ok?
15crown00
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 1:13 p.m.
it's to bad it really is that a dipute has to end in a death.
John Counts
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 12:34 p.m.
Hi Ryan. Police have not released the suspect's name yet.
Ryan
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 4:07 p.m.
John, that is the problem. I am not trying to put this on you; I understand that the police around here have no desire to work with the public in any meaningful way which is why they routinely fail to provide any names of the suspects they are looking for. The article even states the police believe they know who did it, yet they make no attempt to inform the public or ask for help. I guess its another case of "ooh a scary crime happened here, make sure to vote for the police millage" and no real information . Again.
Sandra Samons
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 1:55 p.m.
Then the news item should have said that.
Ryan
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 12:28 p.m.
Hey guys, if you actually want the publics help finding this guy, and you already know who you are looking for, it helps to release his name so people who know him can help bring him in. I mean, after all, you printed a medical marijuana growers name and address in the paper when he hasn't been accused of any crime yet this alleged murderer gets more concern for his privacy? Oh, I forgot, they gave a description... Let's see, black male, tall, heavy, that describes about 20% of the population around here. I can bring you fifty suspects by tonight.. or you could release the name of the suspect who you believe actually did it.
Enso
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 12:20 p.m.
And THAT is what handguns are intended to do.
Matt Cooper
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 2:23 p.m.
No, WalkingJoe, that is not what guns are intended for. They are intended to explosively release a small metal projectile that will kill or severely mai/injure whatever it happens to strike. The gun did exactly what it was intended to do. It is the operator of the gun that determines what it is intended to do beyond releasing the projectile, and for as many guns as we have on the street, we will have a corresponding number of potential bad people making bad decisions and taking the lives of other people. It is the murder of this young man that decided what the intent of his weapon was, and he should be punished accordingly.
PrevoTownie
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 2:22 p.m.
The key word is intended. A baseball bat is "intended" to hit a ball but gets used as a weapon to kill. I guess baseball is next to be outlawed.
cinnabar7071
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 12:27 p.m.
Bricks do the same thing, but that is not their intended use. 2 lives wasted over a argument, this is sad beyond belief, even sadder that some would put blame on a gun and not the shooter.
WalkingJoe
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 12:26 p.m.
No, handguns are intended for personal protection not for settling arguments.
leezee
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 11:35 a.m.
What is it that would make a person make such a poor choice - I don't care what the argument was about. He took a life and now he's going to jail forever (I hope). I would ask the shooter, "was it worth it?".
Woman in Ypsilanti
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 3:44 p.m.
People spend their whole careers trying to answer that question. I'll bet even the shooter doesn't have that level of insight.
getyourstorystraightfirst
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 12:58 p.m.
even more sad because the victim had a wife, 2 small children, & family that loved him
Billy
Thu, Oct 4, 2012 : 12:13 p.m.
"What is it that would make a person make such a poor choice " Ignorance....lack of humanity....evil....malice.... Take your pick I guess....no matter what though none of them will ever be a "good" reason...