West Bloomfield man charged in double shooting

WEST BLOOMFIELD — A local man stands accused of shooting two people in what authorities believe was attempted murder.

Fawzi George Kased, 76, of West Bloomfield, was arraigned Feb. 24 in 48th District Court in Bloomfield Hills on eight felony counts after he reportedly shot a man and woman he knew.

The charges include two counts of assault with intent to murder, potentially a life felony. He was also charged with one count of discharging a firearm in or at a building, which is a potential 10-year felony, as well as one count of a prohibited person carrying a firearm — a five-year felony — and several other felony firearm charges.

Just before 9 a.m. Feb. 21, West Bloomfield police received a call from a woman who lives at the Thornberry Apartments in West Bloomfield. The woman stated that Kased was allegedly trying to force his way into her unit.

According to police, Kased is also a resident at the apartments. Officers were dispatched to the complex, located at 5460 Bentley Road near Maple and Farmington roads, and searched the area for the suspect.

Less than 10 minutes later, police received another call, alerting them to a shooting at the Maple View Liquor store, located at 6084 W. Maple Road in West Bloomfield. The call was reportedly made by a family member of a man who had just been shot there. Police were told the wounded man was driving himself to the hospital.

While police were on their way to the hospital to check on the man, dispatch received yet another call, this time reporting that gunshots had been fired at the Thornberry Apartments, and that the woman who initially called police about Kased had been shot through her door.

Police identified Kased as a suspect in both shootings. They located him on the roads and reportedly confronted him as he exited the car holding a rifle, ordering him to drop his weapon. Kased complied, police said, and he was arrested. At press time, Kased was still in custody.

The shooting victims were treated at a nearby hospital. The male victim was originally on life support. While his injuries were serious, he is now in stable condition, as of press time. As for the female victim, she was released from the hospital.

Kased is a former employee of the Maple View Liquor store and left the place in 2021.  Since then, there has been “little to no contact with the male victim,” police said.

“There is no relationship between (Kased) and the female victim,” said West Bloomfield Police Chief Dale Young. “The female victim’s husband is a family friend of the male victim. The husband helps out at the Maple View Liquor store from time to time and only knows Fawzi because he used to work at the store and is a neighbor in the same apartment complex.”

At press time, there was no attorney listed for Kased, according to court records.

Judge Diane D’Agostini issued a $3 million bond, which must be paid in full. She did not allow 10% of the bond.

"It appears both shootings were targeted and not random,” Young said. “Since the shooter is in custody, there is no ongoing danger to the community.”

Kased is now scheduled for a preliminary examination March 12.