The Michigan State Police revealed a shocking piece of information after a chase resulted in the death of an alleged suspect. According to reports by Fox 2 Detroit, deputies attempted to pull the suspect over at a traffic light after noticing the van had no headlights on January 6, 2026.
The van also reportedly did not have a license plate. When deputies approached the vehicle to initiate a traffic stop, the suspect’s van took off, leading to a chase in Ypsilanti, Michigan. The incident took place early in the morning and began at 1:54 a.m. The van led deputies the wrong way down Grove.
Michigan deputies claimed the man they killed fired a shotgun — then turned around and admitted the gun was pure fiction.https://t.co/zjmT09HNhO
— Atlanta Black Star (@ATLBlackStar) January 21, 2026
The news outlet cited Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Commander Eugene Rush’s statement involving the incident and a lie that was reportedly told. Deputies were apparently notified at the time that the suspect was armed with a gun.
During the chase, there was a collision between the deputies’ vehicle and the suspect’s. This led to the driver’s car overturning and crashing near Prospect and Michigan at 2:05 a.m.
Shortly afterward, the driver allegedly got up, pointed a shotgun at the deputies, and started shooting. In response, deputies shot and killed the suspect. Rush has now revealed that the suspect did not have a shotgun on his person.
Rush said he wanted the public to know about the update as soon as the Sheriff’s Department learned of it, leading to the shocking revelation. Hours after the crash, Ruta Ulcinaite of WXYZ spoke to Michigan police about the incident.
At the time, officers confirmed on air to the reporter that the suspect shot first. Ulcinaite said, “They’re telling me the suspect did fire at the deputies after the crash and an unknown number of deputies returned the fire, killing the man.”
Speaking exclusively to Fox 2 News, Commander Rush highlighted the Michigan State Police’s primary goal. He said, “The entire mission is to create a safe and more just Washtenaw County for all.”
Yep, they want to be “transparent” now that they were caught lying about murdering an unarmed individual and still won’t provide any details.
‘We want to be transparent’: Michigan cops claimed they killed a man because he fired at them with a shotgun, but now they’re admitting…
— WTF2 (@WTF21924907) January 21, 2026
The commander also shed light on the decision to share the revelation with the public almost weeks after the January 6 shooting. Commander Rush said, “We want to be transparent with the public.” He added, “I think the public deserves that transparency for our staff and those involved…”
The Michigan State Police are continuing to carry out investigations into the incident following the January 6, 2026, shooting. The name of the suspect and the deputies involved in the case are still being kept under wraps.
A press conference is expected to take place soon. It will reveal the exact details of what happened that day and will unravel the events leading up to the shooting. Since it is still an ongoing investigation, officials are remaining tight-lipped about details of the case. Exact details about when the press conference will take place have yet to be announced by the department.
