Michigan state representative Jimmy Womack (D) was held up at gunpoint outside a liquor store in Detroit on Sunday night.
Womack was at the liquor store to purchase a bottle of champagne and was heading back to his car when three men brandished guns and demanded Womack give them his car keys. He refused, later admitting that was dangerous.
“I said, ‘I’m not starting the car, and I’m not giving you the car,” Womack told The Detroit News. “Your life is worth more than anything material. That was stupid. That was stupid. I know that.”
Luckily, the assailants decided to leave the car alone and took $300 from Womack’s shirt pocket. He believes they knew about the money because they saw him take it out in the liquor store. It is unclear if there have been arrests in the case but Womack was able to pick one of the suspects out of a line-up because they live in the same neighborhood. Womack believe this reflects a bigger “social problem.”
“These people are so brazen they know they can get away with it,” he continued. “It is very, very disheartening when people who live in a neighborhood, they see you, you see them, but they have no problem robbing you.”
This is the second time a prominent Detroit resident has been robbed in three months. Famed gospel artist and pastor Marvin Winans was carjacked at a gas station. The robbery happened in broad daylight and the thieves walked away with $200 in cash, Winan’s wallet, a $15,000 Rolex watch in addition to his 2012 Infiniti QX56 SUV.
Brian K. Young, 18, and Montoya Givens and Christopher Moorehead, both 20 years old, stood trial and were charged with carjacking, unarmed robbery and conspiracy. They could be sentenced to life in prison if convicted. Winans walked away with only minor injuries.
