CNN
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A Detroit man has been charged with murder in the October killing of Detroit synagogue president Samantha Woll during a home invasion, prosecutors announced on Wednesday.
Michael Manuel Jackson-Bolanos, 28, has been charged with committing a felony murder during the perpetration or attempted perpetration of a larceny and/or a first-degree home invasion, according to the Detroit Police Department. If convicted, the defendant faces life in prison without parole, police said.
He was also charged with one count of home invasion and one count of lying to a peace officer, police said. Authorities do not believe Jackson-Bolanos knew Woll. CNN has not been able to immediately identify an attorney for him.
“Let me state very clearly … There are no facts to suggest that this defendant knew Ms. Woll and there are certainly no facts to suggest this was a hate crime,” Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said during a Wednesday news conference.
Woll, the board president of the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue, was found fatally stabbed outside her home in the early morning hours of October 21. She is believed to have stumbled out after she was attacked.
Authorities have said Woll attended a wedding the previous evening and had appeared normal. She returned home shortly after midnight and there were no signs of forced entry at her house, police said after her killing.
A medical examiner determined Woll’s death was caused by multiple sharp force wounds with a straight-edge cutting instrument, Worthy said, adding Woll died by homicide.
The defendant was expected to appear for arraignment Wednesday evening, according to Worthy, though CNN was unable to confirm details of the court appearance.
This is a developing story and will be updated.