CLINTON TWP. (WWJ) -- A Metro Detroit-area businessman has been ordered to stand trial for involuntary manslaughter, after a young man was hit by a nitrous oxide canister and killed more than two years ago.
The Macomb County Prosecutor's Office said 34-year old Noor Kestou of Commerce Township will stand trial for the death of 19-year old Turner Salter on March 4, 2024.
Investigators said Kestou stored thousands of nitrous oxide and butane canisters in a storage facility in Clinton Township that caught fire, causing multiple explosions.
The fire started at the former Goo Smoke Shop/Select Distributors, in the area of at 15 Mile Rd. and Groesbeck, which caused an explosion that sent nitrous oxide cans flying through the air.
Debris is seen in the aftermath of a massive fire at a Clinton Township business.
Credit: Jon Hewett/WWJ
Authorities said Salter, a Clinton Township resident, was about 1/4 mile away from the scene when he was hit in the head by one of those cans, and died.
This was the second hearing to determine if Kestou would stand trial.
A Circuit Court judge sent the case back to District Court and ordered prosecutors to show that Kestou's storage of the materials presented a hazard that caused Salter's death.
Kestou faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted.
