PONTIAC, Mich. (WWJ) - The suspected gunman behind a fatal drive-by in Pontiac that killed a young girl as she was returning home from school last week faces life in prison after being charged with 10 felony counts on Friday afternoon.
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Justin Jayshon Rouser, 19, was arraigned in Oakland County on four counts of assault with intent to commit murder, five counts of possession of a firearm while in the commission of a felony and one count of first-degree murder; a judge order Rouser to be held without bond at the Oakland County Jail.
Sheriff Michael Bouchard praised his team of troopers and assisting ATF agents for quickly tracking down suspects wanted in connection with the fatal shooting that killed 7-year-old Ariah Jackson on March 18.
“The wrong people are afraid in our community," Bouchard said in a press release on Friday. "We must make those who carry and use weapons illegally and perpetrate this violence the ones who are fearful of the certainty of long prison time. Children coming home from school should never be afraid. These suspects must be held accountable.”
Authorities said Rouser is member of a violent street gang known as “4-Block;" he was apprehended in Troy on Wednesday by Sheriff's Detectives and agents from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Detectives moved in a residence in Troy after determining the address was most likely where Rouser was hiding out. When authorities arrived at the property, they found two men in a vehicle in the driveway and stopped the car.
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Over 20 agents "aggressively" worked the case and executed five search warrants in multiple homes throughout Troy and Pontiac.
The suspect was found in the front passenger seat wearing a ski mask which authorities believe Rouser was using to an attempt to conceal his identity.
The driver was identified as Troy resident and fellow 4-Block gang member Daejion Markese Bryant, 21. He was questioned by police earlier in the investigation and was arrested on Wednesday; Bryant was charged with lying to an officer during a violent crime investigation.
Bryant was arraigned on the charge on Friday where a judge set a $100,000 cash bond. He is being held in the Oakland County Jail and is to appear for a probable cause
Bryant is not unknown to law enforcement: he was previously out of bond for delivery/manufacture of a controlled substance and resisting and obstructing a police officer.
The OCSO said the suspected driver of the vehicle used in the shooting, 17-year-old JaJuan Calvin McDonald of Pontiac, is not in police custody — a reward of up to $10,000 is being offered for information leading to his arrest.
According to authorities, McDonald was behind the wheel of the orange SUV when Rouser, dressed in black, hung out one of the vehicle's windows and started shooting at Ariah, her sister, her cousins and her mother.
A total of eight shots were fired at the family, police said.
Ariah was shot in the back of the head and died at the hopsital the day following the shooting. Her mother was grazed by a bullet and denied treatment.
The other three girls, aged 6, 7 and 11, were unharmed.
Anyone with information about where McDonald could be has been asked to contact Crime Stoppers of Michigan at 1-800-SPEAK UP (1-800-773-2587).
Tipsters will remain 100% anonymous.
Online tips can be submitted here.
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