According to Detroit Police, a suspect has been arrested in the death of Detroit synagogue president Samantha Woll last month.
Police Chief James E. White said in a statement on X that specifics of the inquiry will be kept private for the time being.
“While this is an encouraging development in our desire to bring closure for Ms. Woll’s family, it does not represent the conclusion of our work in this case,” the statement goes on to say.
According to a law enforcement source involved with the inquiry, investigators believe her death was the result of a domestic disagreement rather than extremism.
Nonetheless, Woll’s murder has alarmed Jewish community members who are still reeling from Hamas’ deadly October 7 strikes on Israel and the accompanying fighting. The conflict has led to an increase in antisemitic occurrences in the United States during the previous month, which had already hit new highs last year.
The culprit in Woll’s death has not been identified by police. It is unknown what charges the suspect may face.
Woll, the board president of the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue in Detroit, was discovered with several stab wounds outside her home at 6:30 a.m. on October 21, six hours after returning home from a wedding, according to authorities.
Officers responded to a 911 call reporting someone “lying on the ground unresponsive” and followed a blood trail from her body to her residence, where detectives think the crime occurred, according to police.
Despite her prominent role in the Jewish community, White claims that no evidence has emerged indicating that the death was motivated by antisemitism. One law enforcement official told CNN that a huge Israeli flag was found intact at Woll’s residence.
During a news conference almost two weeks earlier, White stated that police had “a number of people that give us interest” but were “just short of calling one of the people a suspect.” Police also stated that they suspected the attacker acted alone.
“At this moment, the facts of the inquiry will be kept private in order to maintain the integrity of the essential measures that remain… “Investigators will continue to work with the Wayne County Prosecutors Office until this investigation is completed,” White said in a statement Wednesday.
Woll had been her “normal positive and pleasant self” at the wedding before her murder, according to White, who cited police statements. “By all accounts, she was not in any discomfort, in any distress.”
Family and friends lauded Woll during her memorial ceremony for her contagious smile, giving attitude, readiness to listen, and persistent effort to establish bridges between people and fight for social justice.
“Sam had a uniquely special, personal relationship with countless people across lines of faith and race and politics and all of the things that usually divide us,” Ariana Silverman, a rabbi, told CNN. “So many people think of her as someone with whom they had a particularly close or important relationship, and each of them is right.”
