Police said a fight preceded the Sunday morning gunfire at a west-side home that authorities described as an after-hours location.
DETROIT, Mich. — Three men were killed and four other people were wounded Sunday morning after an altercation led to gunfire at an after-hours location on Detroit’s west side, police said. Investigators had developed leads but had not announced an arrest as of Sunday.
The shooting happened shortly after 7:20 a.m. Sept. 27 near Prest Street and Eaton Avenue. Detroit Police Chief Todd Bettison said police first received an alert of gunfire and then a 911 call. Officers reached the scene within about four minutes and found three men suffering from fatal gunshot wounds. Four other people — two men and two women — were taken to hospitals in private vehicles with injuries police described as not life-threatening.
Bettison said investigators believe a fight or altercation occurred before the shooting. Police had not publicly identified the person or people who fired the shots or disclosed whether more than one weapon was involved. Authorities also had not released the names of the three men who died. Police said the men killed were in their 30s, while the four surviving victims were men and women in their 20s and 30s.
The location was already familiar to Detroit police. Bettison said officers had received seven calls for service at the address since the beginning of the year and that the department had an existing investigation involving the property. He did not publicly provide details about that investigation. Police described the home as operating as an after-hours location, and local reporting characterized the activity there as an after-hours club.
Community Violence Intervention leader Tamara Smith said information gathered by violence-prevention workers suggested the dispute may have begun over a cellphone. Police had not publicly confirmed a cellphone dispute as the cause of the confrontation, making that account a community-based assessment rather than an established investigative finding. Authorities have said only that an altercation occurred before the gunfire.
Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield joined Bettison and other city leaders near the scene Sunday. Sheffield said the city planned to continue efforts against illegal after-hours operations at homes and businesses. The shooting occurred in an area served by the city’s Community Violence Intervention program, which works with neighborhood groups to prevent violence and support people affected by it.
Police said people at the scene attempted to help the victims before first responders arrived. Michigan State Police also responded as investigators secured the area and began gathering evidence. Bettison said detectives had leads but did not disclose what those leads involved. Police said investigators did not believe there was an ongoing threat to the surrounding neighborhood.
The shooting left five male victims and two female victims in all. Three of the men died at the scene, while the other four victims were hospitalized. The incident drew particular attention from city officials because of the number of people shot and the police department’s prior contacts with the address. Officials did not immediately announce whether the earlier calls for service were directly related to the circumstances surrounding Sunday’s shooting.
Questions also remained about who was responsible, how many people fired weapons and the precise sequence of events during the altercation. Police had not announced arrests or publicly identified a suspect by Sunday evening. Authorities also had not released the identities of the three men who were killed pending the continuing investigation and notification process.
Detectives continued investigating the shooting Sunday as police sought information about the people responsible. The department said it had leads, while city officials said the surrounding community was not believed to face an ongoing danger connected to the incident. The investigation into both the shooting and activity at the address remained active.
Author note: Last updated September 27, 2026.