Samantha Woll, the 40-year-old president of the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue in Detroit, Michigan, was found stabbed to death outside her home on Saturday morning. A passerby found Woll’s body at around 6:30 AM.
Woll was also the deputy district director for U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin. Slotkin released a statement saying that Woll “did for our team what came so naturally to her: helping others & serving constituents”.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said in a social media post that she was “shocked, saddened and horrified to learn of Sam’s brutal murder”. Nessel added that Woll was “as kind a person as I’ve ever known” and that she “used her faith and activism to create a better place for everyone”.
The police have not disclosed a motive for the homicide. The killing came at a time of escalating tensions in Jewish and Muslim communities across the United States.
Detroit police are probing the deadly mystery, but in a statement posted on social media, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said she was “horrified to learn of Sam’s brutal murder.”
Woll’s body was discovered along with a “trail of blood” that led from the suspected crime scene to Woll’s home, the outlet reported.
A motive for the killing is not yet known, the police department said. Woll led the Isaac Agree Downtown Detroit Synagogue and previously worked for Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin and on the re-election campaign of Attorney General Dana Nessel, both Democrats, the Free Press reported.
“I was devastated today to learn of the loss of one of Detroit’s great young leaders – Samantha Woll,” Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan wrote on X. “Just weeks ago, I shared a day of joy with Sam at the dedication of the newly renovated Downtown Synagogue. It was a project she successfully led with great pride and enthusiasm.”
The Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue wrote that it was “shocked and saddened” to learn of Woll’s “unexpected” death on its Facebook Saturday afternoon. She had led the synagogue since 2022 and was involved in other local Jewish organizations.
“This is a terrible tragedy. Sam had so many gifts still to contribute to the world. May her memory be a blessing,” wrote Mitchel Blum-Alexander, one of many who commented on the Facebook post.
