Michael Manuel Jackson-Bolanos, 28, from Detroit, has been charged with the murder of Samantha Woll, a well-known leader in Detroit’s Jewish community. Jackson-Bolanos is accused of killing Woll during a home invasion. He has been charged with:
- Homicide
- Home invasion
- Lying to police officers
- First degree murder
- Breaking and entering
The Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office announced the charges. They said there was no indication that Jackson-Bolanos knew Woll or that the killing was a hate crime.
Woll was found stabbed to death outside her home on October 21. Investigators believe the attack began inside the home, before she stumbled outside and collapsed. There was no sign of forced entry at her home.
Woll previously worked as deputy district director for U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin of Holly. She also worked on campaigns for Attorney General Dana Nessel and state Sen. Stephanie Chang of Detroit.
Worthy’s office said the warrant request was being reviewed, but declined to release any further information on developments in the case, which has left Detroiters and local faith communities bewildered in the weeks since Woll was found stabbed to death on Oct. 21 outside her Lafayette Park neighborhood home.
Earlier Tuesday, Detroit police were on and around East Lafayette Street — near where Woll lived — searching for evidence, Detroit police confirmed, though they would not say whether the search was tied to the Woll case.
An initial suspect — different from the one taken into custody on Sunday — was previously apprehended last month, but charges against him never materialized and he was released.
Woll, 40, was found dead outside her home with multiple stab wounds. A trail of blood led detectives to her home, where Detroit police believe the crime likely occurred.
Woll had attended a wedding the night before. Her death made national headlines and sent shock waves throughout Jewish and interfaith communities in metro Detroit. She was the president of the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue and founded the Muslim-Jewish Forum of Detroit.
She was also well-known among Michigan Democratic leadership, having worked for U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Holly, and on the reelection campaign of Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel.
Those who knew Woll described her as a leader whose kindness and dedication to justice were among some of her best qualities.
Some had speculated that the religious leader’s death was motivated by antisemitism amid ongoing fears within Arab, Muslim, and Jewish communities in the United States as war rages abroad between Israel and Hamas.
Detroit Police Chief James White has maintained he is confident, based on the evidence so far, that the killing was not motivated by a hate crime.
