Suspects in fatal car jacking in Monroe arrested in Ohio

Two Ohio police agencies located a pair of Michigan suspects wanted in a fatal carjacking and robbery in Monroe on Saturday, arresting them after the suspects fled a rest area, led police on a chase and fired shots at officers, police said in a social media update Sunday.

According to a Facebook post by the Monroe Public Safety Department, the suspects are wanted in connection with a double shooting outside the Highlander Market in Monroe around 3:40 p.m. on Saturday.

Detectives said two men entered the store, showed a weapon and robbed the business for an undisclosed amount of money. As they left the market, the suspects ordered two men in a blue Ford F-150 parked in front of the market to get out of the vehicle, firing a shot at a witness standing near the truck.

The men, ages 31 and 34, exited the vehicle and were shot by the suspects. The witness was not struck or injured. The 31-year-old, later identified by police as Michael Ronald Beck Jr. of Monroe, died at the scene. The 34-year-old was transported to a local hospital for injuries. Police initially reported that the second victim had died at the hospital, "however, the second victim is still in-surgery but is listed critical condition," police said in an update on social media.

A supervisor with the Monroe Public Safety Department could not discuss whether the second victim was alive or had died. She referred a reporter to a command supervisor, who was not immediately available.

Police said citizen responses, along with information and evidence collected at the scene, photographs of the suspects, along with a photograph of the truck, led to the identification of both suspects. Police did not identify either suspect, pending arraignment.

Around 7:40 p.m. on Saturday, the Ohio State Highway Patrol and deputies with the Wood County Sheriff’s Office located the suspects in the stolen truck. As troopers and deputies approached the vehicle, the suspects fled, traveling southbound on Interstate 75. Troopers initiated a traffic stop, but a pursuit ensued, police said.

The suspects shot at officers multiple times during the chase and troopers returned fire, police said. The pursuit continued southbound on I-75 into Hancock County and exited onto state Route 15. As the suspects approached Township Road 240, the truck veered off the right side of the roadway and struck a ditch.

The driver, identified as a 29-year-old male from Monroe, was flown to an area hospital for serious injuries. A Special Response Team arrived and took the passenger into custody, who was identified as a 44-year-old male from Ann Arbor. He was transported to a local hospital and later taken to the Hancock County Jail.

No officers involved were injured in the incident, which remains under investigation. The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation was requested to investigate the officer-involved shooting.

"The Monroe Police Department would like to remind the public that this was a (completely) random, senseless act of violence," the department's Facebook posts said. "The victims in this case were not affiliated with the offenders in any way. Situations like this shake our community to the core and these acts of violence will in no way be tolerated."

jchambers@detroitnews.com