Suspect, charges named in Macomb Township shooting

MOUNT CLEMENS — On Oct. 22, Macomb County Sheriff Anthony Wickersham and Prosecutor Peter Lucido released the name of the suspect in the alleged attempted murder of a Macomb Township businessman earlier this month and outlined the charges he now faces. 

Jasan Delanta Martin, 32, is accused of shooting at and wounding Eddie Jawad at his home on 24 Mile Road on the morning of Oct. 14. According to court records, Martin was arraigned in the 41A District Court in Shelby Township on Oct. 22 on one count of assault with intent to commit murder and various weapons charges. His bond was set at $1 million cash or surety and he remained held in the Macomb County Jail at press time. He faces up to life in prison if convicted. No defense attorney was listed in court records. 

Martin requested a court-appointed attorney. 

“This is an individual that is on parole out of Ohio, transferred here to Michigan,” Lucido said. “As such it’s a ‘hab four’ or habitual four, up to a life offense. In addition, he’s on parole for armed robbery, kidnapping and assault with a dangerous weapon and probably will have a parole hold, if not already in place, will be in place by the time of his arraignment today.”

Investigators said a suspect snuck onto Jawad’s property on 24 Mile Road near Wellington Valley Drive at around 9:30 a.m. on Oct. 14. The suspect, later identified by investigators as Martin, fired seven shots from a 9mm handgun at Jawad, who was in a car, at around 10:20 a.m. Martin then allegedly fled in a black Ford Escape SUV bearing a license plate that Wickersham said was stolen from a Cadillac registered to a Detroit address.

The Ford Escape proved pivotal in finding Martin, even with the stolen license plate. Investigators relied on details including brake dust on the wheels and smudges and bird poop on the vehicle while cross-refencing security footage from Jawad’s home and traffic cameras in the area. The owner of the Escape — a relative of Martin who reportedly allowed Martin to borrow the SUV — was located in Eastpointe. Data from the SUV’s security tracking system put the vehicle at an address near Wellington Valley Drive during the attack on Jawad. Martin was arrested in the city of Warren on Rivard Avenue on Oct. 19.

Wickersham said 23 search warrants were executed during the investigation. Agencies and units involved in the investigation included the Macomb County Sheriff’s Office tactical team, the Warren Police Department, the FBI Violent Crimes and Gang Task Force, the Macomb Sheriff’s Enforcement Team, the Eastpointe Police Department and the computer crimes team of the Macomb County Sheriff’s Office. 

“This was a total effort of law enforcement at every level to get this individual into custody,” Wickersham said. 

The case remains under investigation. Wickersham would not provide an answer when asked about a motive in the case, and any relationship between Jawad and Martin remained unclear at press time.

Jawad, the owner of more than 20 gas stations throughout metro Detroit, was injured by broken glass in the shooting and a bullet reportedly grazed his right leg.

“We’re told a bullet hit his left leg but didn’t penetrate,” Wickersham said. 

In June, Jawad was removed from a Macomb Township Planning Commission meeting when he opposed the development of a Sheetz gas station at the rezoned location of a former drug store. Wickersham said the Pennsylvania-based company’s development in the township is “completely unrelated” to the case.

Lucido said Martin was scheduled to be back in 41A District Court for a probable cause conference on Nov. 3 before Judge Stephen Sierawski. A preliminary examination was scheduled for Nov. 10 in the same court. 

Call Staff Writer Dean Vaglia at (586) 498-1043.