ROCHESTER HILLS, Mich. – Tom Hayes said he picked up his pizza and was driving home in Rochester Hills when he saw three men walking down Milton Street.
Hayes pulled into his driveway and one of the men started yelling.
“He says, ‘Where are the white (explicit) at?’” Hayes said. “He refers to the blue lights, saying that I support the cops. ‘You hang out with cops. You know where the white (explicit) are at.’”
Hayes does have blue lights on his home to show support for law enforcement. He didn’t want to engage and was opening his door when he saw the man, who was yelling, rush up his driveway.
As he unlocked the door, Hayes was punched in the back of the head. He threw the pizza down and the suspect was in the home.
The suspect then punched a window out and took off.
Hayes called 911 and deputies searched the area, finding the three men who matched the description. As they tried to take the suspect into custody, he took off running and deputies used a taser on him.
He was then taken into custody. The suspect is a 24-year-old man with prior convictions for aggravated assault with a weapon and drug offenses out of Florida.
He has not yet been arraigned.
Sheriff Mike Bouchard said this kind of escalation of violence is becoming too common.
“I understand because of COVID-19, economics, politics and health, there are great tensions and anxiety. All of those things are playing in and we’re seeing a greater escalation of violence but that kind of escalation is never the answer," Bouchard said.