HARRISON TWP. (WWJ) — A Southfield man has been charged with first-degree murder for allegedly shooting a coworker to death at a warehouse in Harrison Township last week.
Karl Marcellus Johnson, 28, was arraigned Thursday and bond was set at $5 million, no 10%.
Macomb County Prosecutor called the murder “a calculated and cold-blooded act that robbed a man of his life and devastated a family forever.”
The Macomb County Sheriff’s Office said earlier this week deputies were called to Immanuel & Associates — a large warehouse building in an industrial area near Selfridge Air National Guard Base — around 6:30 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 11 on the report of a man who was not breathing.
When deputies showed up they found 54-year-old Roger Palmer of Detroit sitting at his desk with a gunshot wound to the head. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The sheriff’s office previously said after reviewing security footage investigators learned the suspect, who was wearing a mask, parked his SUV near the business around 5 a.m. and somehow gained entry to the building.
Palmer arrived at work about an hour later and at approximately 6:20 a.m., the suspect walked back to his SUV and drove away on southbound Executive Drive, the sheriff’s office said.
The sheriff’s office said detectives “worked tirelessly” to identify Johnson as the suspect in the alleged homicide.
While officials said Johnson and Palmer worked together, no information about a possible motive in the case has been released.
The Macomb County Sheriff’s Enforcement Team (SET) and Macomb Area Computer Enforcement (MACE) units were assisted by the FBI, US Marshals and Michigan State Police.