Michigan sheriff’s deputy fatally shot while pursuing stolen vehicle in Detroit

DETROIT (AP) — A Michigan County sheriff’s deputy was fatally shot while pursuing a suspected stolen vehicle in Detroit, the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office said Sunday.

Bradley J. Reckling, on duty in a civilian vehicle, pursued a 2022 Chevy Equinox Saturday evening after the vehicle was reported stolen earlier in the day from Red Oaks Waterpark in suburban Madison Heights, authorities said.

Reckling and other detectives had been searching for the suspected stolen vehicle and found it in Detroit. Reckling had been following the vehicle when it suddenly stopped, people got out and shot the detective in the head, chest and upper body, according to Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard.

“It was an ambush,” Bouchard said at a press conference on Sunday.

He said three people were arrested and Detroit police are continuing their investigation.

Reckling, of Rochester Hills, had been on the force for nine years. He was married and the father of three children, with a fourth on the way, Bouchard said.

Bouchard said the shooting comes at a particularly difficult time for the department. Earlier this month, the county sheriff’s office was alerted to a shooting at a splash pad in a Detroit suburb.

“Things like this are devastating,” Bouchard said.

The Associated Press