DETROIT (WWJ) - A man who shot himself in the head during a police pursuit in Detroit was apparently a federal informant at the time he allegedly killed six people.
A U.S. District Court spokesman tells the Detroit News that Kenyel William Brown, 40, was released at the behest of a federal law enforcement agency before the alleged murders, despite his failures to meet requirements that would have landed him back behind bars months earlier on a federal weapons charge.
Brown reportedly failed drug tests, didn't appear for mandated meetings with drug counselors and was arrested for drunken driving all while on probation -- yet remained free.
Detroit Police Chief James Craig says he's "furious" that Brown was not locked up earlier due to probation violations.
Charges against Brown were filed Tuesday in connection with a triple shooting in River Rouge on Feb. 2 that left two people dead and another critically injured. Authorities say that incident happened in the 500 block of Beechwood.
Brown is charged with two counts of first degree premeditated murder, one count of assault with intent to murder, one count of assault with intent to do great bodily harm less than murder, one count of felon in possession of a firearm, and five counts of felony firearm.
In addition to the triple shooting case, multiple law enforcement agencies, including the U.S. Marshals, had been looking at Brown for at least four other murders, including two in Detroit, one in Highland Park and another in River Rouge.
A manhunt began over the weekend, and it ended Monday shortly after a tip came in from an adult bookstore employee who saw him near the border of Detroit and Oak Park. After a short foot chase, Brown turned the gun on himself and was last listed in critical condition.
The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office has also received warrant requests regarding Brown. A case involving a homicide on Feb. 22 on Minnesota on Detroit's east side is under review, while another case regarding a Feb. 20 shooting at a t-shirt shop on 8 Mile Road in Detroit has been returned to the requesting agency for further investigation.