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Traylor
ROYAL OAK — On May 27, Royal Oak police took one suspect into custody — the other remains at large — in an incident involving a stolen dark gray Dodge Charger from Canton.
At approximately 2:45 p.m. May 27, the Royal Oak Police Department received a be-on-the-lookout call from the Troy Police Department regarding a pursuit of the stolen vehicle. Troy had broken off the pursuit, and the stolen vehicle was last seen traveling westbound on 14 Mile Road, near Crooks Road, in Royal Oak.
Lt. Al Carter, of the Royal Oak Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division, said the area in question is a “really busy area” and that, one minute later, at 2:46 p.m., Royal Oak police responded to a report that the stolen vehicle had crashed near Coolidge Highway and 13 Mile Road.
“We think they were going at a high rate of speed. That section there with the curves can be tricky, and we believe they lost control of the vehicle,” Carter said. “They were not being pursued.”
Carter added that the stolen Dodge Charger collided at a high rate of speed with another vehicle that was stopped at a red light after the stolen vehicle attempted to veer around traffic and jump the curb.
“Luckily, there were no injuries,” he said. “There were people there that witnessed the driver and the passenger flee.”
According to witnesses, the driver and passenger fled on foot southbound through the Woodward North apartment complex parking lot to nearby neighborhoods. Royal Oak police, with the assistance of the Berkley Department of Public Safety and the Clawson Police Department, established a perimeter and quickly arrested the passenger.
Carter said a witness tipped off police that he saw the suspect run to a house, where police approached him, interviewed him and arrested him. He was in possession of a stolen handgun and a device used to reprogram an electronic key, Carter said..
“He claimed he didn’t know the driver at all during the whole process,” Carter said. “Being the passenger, we could only charge him with carrying a concealed weapon.”
During the incident, police placed nearby Addams Elementary School under a secure lockdown, as it occurred just before the end of the school day. Carter said the lockdown created “a lot of hype with the climate,” and that police allowed for parents to pick up their children from school.
The other suspect was last seen running in a southeastern direction. He was described as a younger Black male who was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt with a possibly gray shirt underneath, black track-style pants, and black shoes with orange or amber soles. He was not located, despite a K-9 track and a search of nearby businesses.
On May 29, 44th District Court Judge Derek Meinecke arraigned Tasmen Omari-Deshawn Traylor, 22, of Detroit, on one count of carrying a concealed weapon, a felony punishable by up to five years in prison.
According to police, Traylor has no criminal history. Meinecke set his bond at $10,000 cash or surety, no 10%. His next scheduled court appearance is on June 10. Traylor did not have a defense attorney on record as of press time.
“Thank God no one was injured in this pursuit (in Troy),” Carter said. “(Dodge Chargers are) a popular car that are stolen and then used in other crimes. They steal the car because it’s fast.”
The investigation is ongoing. Police ask that anyone with additional information contact the Criminal Investigation Division at (248) 246-3456.
