Police nab terror suspect

By Charles Sercombe
A 69-year-old man from Ohio who has a history of mental issues threatened to kill immigrants in Hamtramck, according to the Hamtramck Police Department.
According to Deputy Chief Andrew Mileski, William Darocha, who has had a history of run-ins with the police, went to a Catholic Church in Toledo and asked to speak with a priest because “He was thinking of coming to Michigan to kill some immigrants in Hamtramck.”
He was told that no priest was available, and left. In the meantime, the church called local police, who then alerted the FBI, which released a warning to Michigan police departments.
Officers in Taylor spotted his car and arrested him without incident. No weapons were found in the vehicle. He will be extradited back to Toledo, where he will face a felony charge of making a terrorist threat.
“The threat was neutralized,” Mileski said.
The Hamtramck Police Department worked in partnership with the FBI on the matter.
It’s not known at this time whether the man was politically motivated.
The penalty for making a terrorist threat in Ohio depends on a number of things, and may include: prison, fines, restitution, and probation.
A number of Muslims in Hamtramck, including Mayor Amer Ghalib, have come out in support of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, the former president.
Many of the Muslim Trump supporters here are immigrants from Yemen, which includes Ghalib.
That endorsement has attracted national and international media attention.
Trump is well known for his travel ban on people from majority Muslim countries, including Yemen.
Back in January of this year, a 39-year-old Canadian man threatened to come here to kill Mayor Ghalib. That suspect was arrested in Vancouver before he left Canada, and was eventually charged in an unrelated homicide.
It was not clear what the man’s motivation was in that threat.
On Facebook, Police Chief Jamiel Altaheri thanked Mileski, Detective Commander David Cornwell, the detectives involved in the case, the FBI, Ohio Law enforcement agencies and the Taylor Police Department “in the investigation and apprehension of a wanted suspect making terroristic threats towards the City of Hamtramck. We are here to keep you Safe! It’s what we do!”
Posted Oct. 11, 2024