Videos released of new suspect in Wayne State cop killing

Detroit Police released several video clips Thursday of a new suspect wanted in connection with the fatal shooting of Wayne State University Police Sgt. Collin Rose last month.

In the videos released by police, an unidentified man can be seen riding a bike that has a small front wheel down a street, just prior to the shooting. Two additional videos also show the man running down the street after the killing. But according to a news release from the department, investigators say they believe the suspect was riding a bike at the time of the shooting.

No further details were released about the potential suspect.

The new footage comes just a day after criminal charges were dropped Wednesday against DeAngelo L. Davis, a Detroit man who was accused of shooting Rose in the head about 6:35 p.m. Nov. 22 at Lincoln and Brainard streets in Detroit's Woodbridge neighborhood, just west of Wayne State's Midtown campus. The 29-year-old officer died a day later.

​Rose was a canine officer who was hired by the Wayne State police department in March 2011.

►Related:Thin Blue Line pays tribute to fallen officer Collin Rose

►Related:Slain Wayne State officer's police dogs are grieving, too

Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy, who was flanked by Detroit Police James Craig and WSU Police Chief Anthony Hold, announced the dropped charges during a brief news conference that lasted less than four minutes.

"He is no longer a suspect at this time," Worthy said, regarding Davis.

Worthy answered no questions from reporters at the news conference in her office at the Frank Murphy Hall of Justice in downtown Detroit.

In a news release, the prosecutor's office said that "after a review of new evidence, prosecutors and the police have determined that DeAngelo Davis is not a suspect."

"The Homicide Task Force, comprised of the Detroit Police Department and the Michigan State Police, continues to aggressively commit their time and resources to investigate the death," the statement said. "... For this reason, we are not at liberty to provide further details about the dismissed case and the ongoing investigation."

Craig defended the work of his investigators Thursday to reporters during an impromptu briefing on the killing, saying that the investigation is "not back at square one."

"When they determined the investigation was going in a different direction, it was these investigators who approached the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office," Craig said. "...Clearly we're not just going to keep a person in custody if we don't believe he's responsible for the murder. I stand firm that we made a legal arrest. We had probable cause to arrest, the prosecutor agreed and the prosecutor decided to charge. ...Again, we followed the evidence."

Craig also chided media coverage of the case, saying that outlets incorrectly reported that the sole reason Davis was released from custody was because he was captured on video footage at a nearby liquor store at the time of the killing.

"I know that you didn't get much information at the conclusion at the press conference but however to put out information that the reason why the suspect was released from custody was based on a video depicting the suspect at a liquor store at the same time of the shooting is reprehensible," Craig said.

"That is false. We know from the investigation that yes he was at that liquor store and it was 15 mins following the shooting incident. That liquor store in fact is about a block away form where that shooting occurred. So is it reasonable to believe that someone could travel a city block in less than 15 minutes? Yes, it is. He was in that area."

Craig declined to specifically state what evidence led to charges being dropped against Davis. But Craig did say one factor appeared to be that Davis has a noticeable limp, but the suspect in the killing does now.

"(Davis) had a very distinctive gait, meaning that he had a distinctive limp," Craig said. "We know that looking at images of the suspect responsible for the killing there was no limp. ...I'll tell you candidly that was an issue as well but that was not the sole issue in the decision to go in another direction."

Davis was arrested hours after the shooting and was held in jail without bond. Police said at the time that Rose stopped Davis and was trying to take Davis into custody when Rose was shot. Davis had been charged with first-degree murder, murder of a police officer, felon in possession of a firearm and two counts of felony firearm, as well as being a habitual offender. Davis was released late Wednesday.

Originally, the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office said Rose was conducting a traffic investigation of Davis, who was allegedly riding a bicycle in the area of Lincoln and Brainard. An earlier news release said Rose called for backup at 6:31 p.m., and while he was attempting to take Davis into custody, Davis shot the officer in the head, then fled on foot.

Davis' attorney Nicole James, who was representing him in the criminal case, questioned the investigation in a statement released Wednesday.

"The murder of Sgt. Rose was a tragic loss to the community and law enforcement, but it was also wrong to snatch Mr. DeAngelo Davis off the street and try this case in the media despite a lack of evidence connecting him to the crime," James said. "The rush to judgment by the Detroit Police Department, Wayne State Public Safety and the prosecutor's office resulted in Mr. Davis being vilified and his reputation sullied by both the national and local media."

Although charges were dropped against Davis, Craig said the department believes he had some sort of contact with the bicycle seen in the newly released videos, as did the new suspect.

"We may talk to him( Davis) and I put emphasis on May," Craig said. "We may talk to him in the view of a witness. As I said before, we believe that the suspect(Davis) has connection to the bicycle as well as the suspect we believe is now responsible for the murder."

Investigators still believe that Rose was investigating someone who had been riding a bicycle. A $15,000 reward for information is being offered.

"We are trying to catch a cop killer," Craig said.

Call 1-888-ATF-TIPS or 1-888-283-8477 or 1-800-SPEAK-UP.

Contact Katrease Stafford: kstafford@freepress.com or 313-223-4759.

Reporters Jim Schaefer and Gina Damron contributed to this report.