Four teenagers know who killed 15-year-old Tyler Johnson in a Southfield hotel room in February 2024.
Two of them tried to flee the Westin Southfield Detroit hotel when police arrived, and one was detained for possessing two handguns, including one that was used in the shooting.
But a little more than a year later, no charges have been filed, and the death remains a mystery.
Two days after Metro Times published a story about Johnson’s mother Tomika Alexander criticizing detectives for failing to gather enough evidence for charges, Southfield police held a news conference to tell their side of the story Wednesday.
“We have four witnesses to this senseless crime, and at this time, none of them have come forward to give us an understanding of what transpired,” Southfield Police Chief Elvin V. Barren said. “We have physical evidence; we have circumstantial evidence. What we need is an eyewitness so we can bring these things together.”
At this time, the investigation is “in a stalled state,” Barren said.
Police initially detained the teen who tried to flee and was in possession of two handguns, but he was let go because detectives don’t know who pulled the trigger and what prompted the shooting.
“We have an idea who did it. Absolutely,” Barren said. “To move this case forward there are four people who witnessed this. I need at least one of the four to have the courage to come forward and give us the information that we need.”
During the early part of the investigation, police received a search warrant to comb through the teens’ cell phones but found no hard evidence.
“What we did discover is multiple photos of the teens at the hotel, some of which were handling weapons,” Barren said.
Barren expressed sympathy for Johnson’s mother and said he reached out to her before the press conference, but he hadn’t heard back.
“This is very difficult for the mother,” Barren said. “She wants answers. Anything short of answers, she’s going to get angry about, and understandably.”
Barren emphasized that police are not giving up on the case.
“We’re going to continue to do things ethically,” Barren said. “We’re going to plead to these kids and their parents” to talk.
