'We made eye contact and he started shooting at me:' Witness who was shot after stopping to help at scene of Garden City crash recounts harrowing moments

GARDEN CITY (WWJ) - A Good Samaritan who was shot by a gunman while trying to help the scene of a car crash in Garden City is speaking out about the harrowing ordeal that ended when the gunman was shot and killed by police on Tuesday.

"I stopped to get some gas and head to work" Antoine Williams, 48, told WWJ's Mike Bowman of how he ended up at the corner of Ford Road and Venoy, near the border with Westland, around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday.

Williams said it was still dark out when he heard a loud bang and saw what appeared to be a "really bad" car crash between two vehicles.

"I pulled my phone out to call 911, they answered the phone... I was debating how long... before I should go up there, but it was really bad," Williams added. "I was talking to 911 and I was walking towards... one of the cars in the crash and a guy jumped out."

The driver produced a firearm, Williams said, and began open firing.

"He started shooting in one direction and then we made eye contact and then he pointed the gun towards me and started firing at me," he recalled. Williams was struck twice in the face, once in the cheek and through the ear, before he hit the ground.

He said it took a moment to process what just happened -- but even as he was laying wounded on the ground, the gunman continued to move toward Williams and fired off two more rounds.

"I thought it was over right there," Williams told Bowman, but he managed to get up and run inside the gas station. The gunman then turned his attention to the other vehicle involved in the crash and fired nine or ten more rounds. Williams said at the time, he didn't know the vehicle was empty and believed the gunman had killed whoever was inside.

At the time, he didn't know the vehicle was empty and believed the gunman had killed whoever was inside.

" I was trying to keep the pressure on my head and the clerk kept yelling to lock the door, but I couldn't find the lock.... and when I looked up again, he was on his way in," Williams said of the gunman who then entered the gas station and chased Williams while firing his weapon.

The two exchanged brief words, Williams added, and it became apparent that the suspect could've possibly been under the influence during the ordeal.

"He stopped. He looked at me, I looked at him," Williams told Bowman. "He was on something, I could tell in his eyes that he was definitely under the influence of something."

According to Williams, the gunman's weapons kept jamming. When it jammed another time, he took off out of the store and warned others that has just arrived at the gas station that there was an active shooter.

"These two nice ladies still got out of their cars and assisted me," Williams said.

The suspect then headed the other direction down Ford Road, shooting at cars coming his way until Garden City police officers arrived at the scene. The confronted the suspect, according to Michigan State Police, with one officer open firing on the gunman, fatally striking him.

The suspect was identified as a 37-year old man from Hamtramck and Williams said they didn't know one another and that he wasn't involved in the crash at all until he decided to step in and help.

"It was like he knew me or something, like he wanted to kill me, Williams said. "Like we knew each other or something, but we didn't -- he's a total stranger."

William said he later thought the suspect assumed he was part of the other vehicle involved in the crash -- while uncomforted reports state the shooting could've stemmed from a road rage incident, Williams said it was hard to tell.

Willams was rushed to a local hospital where he was treated and released late Tuesday evening. The 48-year-old is now recovering. While he says he is fortunate that the incident didn't end worse, he is currently unable to run his business, Mfer Seasonings and Spices out of Livonia, and has started a GoFundMe to help with medical expenses.

As of Wednesday afternoon, he has raised $220 out of his $5,000 goal.

A second victim who sustained injuries from the initial crash was also hospitalized and last said to be in stable condition, state police said.

An alert sent to Garden City residents just before 8:30 a.m. asked drivers to avoid the intersection of Ford and Venoy for an ongoing police investigation, saying "the intersection is closed in all directions and will require a detour of traffic for the next few hours."

Video of the investigation posted to social media showed a Jeep and car with severe front end damage along with a red Chevy vehicle out front of the Suburban Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram of Garden City dealership at 32850 Ford Road.

Troopers were at scene along with Garden City police officers. State police say they are trying to determine if road rage played some part in the case.

Anyone who may have witnessed the crash or shooting is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1 (800)-SPEAK UP or Michigan State Police at (855) MICH-TIP.

This is a developing story. Stay tuned to WWJ LIVE for the latest updates.