Michigan officers cleared in fatal shooting of Grand Blanc church attacker

Kara Berg, The Detroit News on Feb 4, 2026

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DETROIT — A Michigan Department of National Resources officer and a Grand Blanc police officer will not be charged after they fatally shot a man who drove into a Genesee County church and shot several people, prosecutors said Wednesday.

The officers, whom The Detroit News is not naming because they have not been charged, shot 40-year-old Thomas "Jake" Sanford, of Burton, and ultimately stopped him from killing more people Sept. 28 at the Church of Latter Day Saints in Grand Blanc Township. Sanford shot 10 people, two fatally, and set the building on fire.

John Bond, 77; Thelma Armstrong, 54; Craig Hayden, 72; and William "Pat" Howard, 77, died during the shooting and fire. Two died after being shot and two died in the church fire. Hayden reportedly was killed while trying to help others during the attack. Eight others were wounded.

The victims ranged in age from 6 years old to 78, police said.

The Grand Blanc officer, who was attending service at the church, heard Sanford’s pickup crash through the wall, according to the Genesee County Prosecutor's Office, which issued a press release Wednesday detailing its findings in the case.

The officer saw Sanford approaching him carrying an AK-47 rifle as well as a pistol in his belt and shoot at several church members. The officer shot five times at Sanford, but missed and was shot by Sanford three times in the torso.

The DNR officer was on patrol in Grand Blanc Township when he heard radio traffic about the active shooter, according to prosecutors. He saw Sanford enter the church with a gun and a gas can then shouted at him to stop, according to prosecutors. Sanford ignored the officer.

The officer went around to another church entrance and heard gunshots and screaming, but could not see inside the property due to heavy smoke from a fire, according to prosecutors. He heard more shots coming from the opposite side of the building and followed the sound.

He confronted Sanford in the parking lot and fired two shots at him as he hid behind a vehicle, but missed, according to prosecutors. Sanford came out from behind the vehicle with his gun raised above his head and yelled “shoot me,” ignoring the officer’s commands to stop and put the weapon down, according to prosecutors. The officer ultimately shot and struck Sanford at the same time the Grand Blanc officer did.

A church member pointed his gun at Sanford but did not fire it.

Both officers fired 10 shots at Sanford within 3 minutes and 43 seconds of the Genesee County 911 dispatch getting its first call at 10:25 a.m., Grand Blanc Township Police Chief William Renye said in October.

Sanford's friends told The News he returned from living in the Utah desert for two years a different person, ravaged by crystal meth and an animosity for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

On Oct. 31, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said the probe confirmed its suspicions that Sanford’s hatred of the religion drove the assault.

“This is a targeted act of violence believed to be motivated by the assailant's anti-religious beliefs,” said Jennifer Runyan, special agent in charge of the FBI office in Detroit.

Runyan didn’t say how investigators arrived at the conclusion or give any indication the FBI is still investigating what led to Sanford's rampage.

Burton City Council candidate Kris Johns said when he encountered Sanford at his home a week before the shooting and fire, Sanford steered the conversation toward the Second Amendment and religion, saying at one point: "Mormons are the Antichrist."

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