Crime & Safety

NEW PHOTO: Farmington Hills Police Calls: Reckless Firearm Use, Fire at Newport Creek

Police arrested a Hills resident for discharging a handgun early New Year's Day.

Police arrested a 46-year-old Malden Ave. resident early on New Year's Day, after he reportedly fired a pistol into his front yard. The man who called police said he had a confrontation with the 46-year-old man, but was inside his home when he saw the shots fired. According to the report, officers found 16 9mm shell casings, holes in the ground and damage to a brick sidewalk at the scene. The accused shooter reportedly refused to answer questions and was taken into custody. A witness told police that several people, including some small children, were in the yard when the shots were fired.

Fire at Newport Creek Apartments

A fire at around 5 p.m. on Dec. 30 apparently started in the laundry room. According to a police report, a tenant returned home after making a quick trip to the store and found fire alarms going off and heavy smoke pouring from a building entrance. The tenant had been drying towels in the basement laundry room. Firefighters had to break down doors to four apartments to ensure all residents got out safely, according to the report. Fire Chief Corey Bartsch said no one was injured and damage was largely confined to the lower level of the building.

Find out what's happening in Farmington-Farmington Hillswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Garage fire

Officers arrived at a home on Waldron around 6 p.m. on Jan. 3 to find a detached garage fully engulfed in flames. According to the report, the garage had been used for a steel fabrication home business. A neighbor reportedly spotted flames and called the son of the homeowner, who lives nearby. The son notified his mother, who called the fire department. The son told police he had smelled smoke when he left the garage at around 4:30 p.m., but thought it was coming from a recently installed wood stove.

Find out what's happening in Farmington-Farmington Hillswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Drunk driving on New Year's Eve

An officer driving west on 8 Mile Road New Year's Eve at 2:15 a.m. watched as a white truck made an extremely wide turn from Farmington Road onto 8 Mile, crossing into the left-turn lane. According to the report, the vehicle traveled at 60 miles per hour in a 45-mile-per-hour zone and was weaving on the road. Stopped at Middlebelt and Liberty, the driver told the officer he had been drinking and was unable to identify the road he was on and the time of day. The 30-year-old Livonia man was placed under arrest after refusing a breath test for alcohol.

Theft from a business

Sometime between 5 p.m. on Dec. 31 and 7 a.m. on Jan. 3, someone broke into Assurant/Northstar on 12 Mile Road and took six American Express gift cards with a total value of $250. According to the police report, the main office door was pried open, breaching a deadbolt lock, and the gift cards were the only items taken.

Third drunk driving arrest

A traffic stop on 8 Mile Road west of Haggerty resulted in the driver being arrested for operating a vehicle while intoxicated. An officer spotted the vehicle, which matched the description of a vehicle with a suspected drunk driver, and made a traffic stop because of an equipment violation. According to the report, the driver admitted having a couple of beers, then later said he had closer to six beers. He reportedly told the officer he was "having a bad day" and had argued with his girlfriend at a Livonia restaurant. The driver was taken into custody after refusing a breath test. A search of the vehicle uncovered a baggie of suspected marijuana and pills that appeared to be vicodin. The 43-year-old Novi man had two prior drunk driving convictions, in 1994 and 2004, according to the report.

Heroin possession

Officers on patrol in the Inkster and 8 Mile Road area stopped a vehicle for a vision obstruction and reportedly noticed the driver was extremely nervous. The driver and passengers agreed to personal searches, and officers reported finding two small packages of suspected heroin in the pocket of one passenger, a 28-year-old Redford Township man. A folded paper with suspected heroin and two syringes, one loaded with suspected heroin, were found hidden in the vehicle, and a search of a purse belonging to the other passenger, a 24-year-old Redford woman, uncovered a number of pills and suspected marijuana, according to the report. All three were taken into custody on narcotics charges; the driver, a 35-year-old Romulus man, was ticketed for the dangling ornament on his rear view mirror.

Liquor violation

An 18-year-old, who was acting as a decoy for police during a routine liquor control inspection, was reportedly served alcohol at on 12 Mile Road at 8:10 p.m. Dec. 29. According to the report, the 29-year-old Farmington Hills woman who served them was issued a citation.

Theft of tires

All four wheels were taken from a Cadillac parked in a carport at Crosswinds Condos some time between 12:01 a.m. on Dec. 28 and 8 p.m. on Dec. 29. A neighbor reported the theft; the owner of the vehicle was out of town. According to the report, the vehicle was left sitting on two landscaping blocks. Police contacted the owner, who was due to return home Dec. 30.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.

More from Farmington-Farmington Hills