Missing teen found dead 'in pool of blood' in vacant basement after dad receives anonymous call
07/27/2022 2:08 pm PDT
DETROIT (TCD) -- An 18-year-old recent high school graduate was found dead from apparent gunshot wounds in a basement the same night he reportedly attended a party with friends.
According to Detroit Police Commander Michael McGinnis, Jacob Hills of Grand Blanc, Michigan, spent "leisure time" with his family on a boat the afternoon of Saturday, July 23. That night, he traveled to Detroit to go to a party. On Sunday, his family grew worried after not hearing from him. They reportedly tracked his location to Dearborn Heights, where they found his car and phone, but Hills himself was nowhere to be seen.
Dearborn Heights Police reportedly put out a missing person report and began investigating.
On Sunday night, Hills' father reportedly received an anonymous phone call saying the teen was in a basement of a vacant apartment on Warren Street. Detroit Police went to the location and found Hills deceased with apparent gunshot wounds. McGinnis said he had been shot at least once.
According to McGinnis, Hills was reportedly "interested in purchasing a firearm," but did not reveal any additional information about how or when Hills planned on buying one. Hills reportedly "had aspirations of going into military service."
WXYZ-TV reports Hills graduated this year from Grand Blanc High School and enlisted in the National Guard.
Hills' mother, Sadie Hills, told WXYZ he bought an AR-15 Friday, July 22, from a store in Grand Blanc "for practice shooting because he was leaving for the National Guard on August 10."
Hills reportedly had the gun in his car when he drove to Detroit the next night. Sadie Hills believes her son was "lured down there because of the gun and his graduation money."
She told WXYZ, "They found my son in a pool of blood. They stole his shoes off his feet."
According to WJBK-TV, McGinnis, however, disagreed with Sadie’s statement and said, "We do not believe he was lured into the city. He willingly came into the city. After he was in the city, he encountered someone that decided to take his life."
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