DEARBORN — The evening of Dec. 1 was shaping up to be just like any other for a manager named Abdulrahman Alqadi at the BP gas station at 10419 Ford Road near Miller Road. 

A window at the Mobil gas station that was fired upon with a shotgun.

But as he glanced out the window just after 10 p.m., he noticed something wasn’t quite right. Three men in a large Chevy truck, possibly a Tahoe, quickly sped off after they saw him noticing them in the large parking lot and service station area.

The manager’s intuition proved to be right as the men circled around and came back a bit later, parking near the door of the station and shining their lights inside. While Alqadiwas trying to make sense of what was happening, one of the men hopped out of the truck and put a shotgun up to the glass as his two associates ran inside and leaped over the counter before pinning him to the ground and putting a gun to his head, likely an AK-47. The third man also wielded a pistol.  

“Give me the safe keys,” one of the robbers demanded, while threatening to shoot the frightened man.

“We’re here for the money, we’re not here to kill anybody,” said the third man to his partner, according Alqadi. 

Tired of waiting, the robbers grabbed the safe, which was not bolted down, as well as a pair of register drawers, before warning Alqadi to stay on the ground for five minutes as they prepared to leave. 

Alqadi instead pressed a button wired to a security company about a minute later that alerted Dearborn police, who arrived on the scene within another minute. Despite the speedy response time, the men, who were described as black males wearing ski masks and gloves, were able to get away with thousands of dollars and several cartons of cigarettes. 

The frightening ordeal, which has become commonplace for many Arab American gas station workers and owners in Detroit, was repeated two days later at the Mobil gas station on 12841 Michigan Avenue near Oakman.  

The BP gas station on Ford Road near Miller Road and the border of Detroit was recently the site of an armed robbery by three heavily-armed men. Dearborn police think another robbery at the Mobil on Michigan Avenue and Oakman a little over two days later was carried out by the same group.

On Sunday, Dec. 4 around 7:45 a.m., five men also wearing ski masks and gloves attempted to pull off another heist, with one shooting the outside glass near the cash register area with a shotgun causing a serious distraction as two of them again leaped over the counter in an attempt to grab the store’s safe.

This time, however, the safe was bolted down and the robbers decided to leave right away in their dark SUV without securing any money, according to the store owner who used the name Tom Shaalan and has been in the store for six years. 

Dearborn Police Chief Ron Haddad said he felt confident that the guilty parties would be captured and brought to justice in the near future. Police believe that the same group may be responsible for both robberies. 

“We’re working with other police departments in the region to try to solve these robberies,” Haddad said, noting that video and pictures have been taken and are being examined. 

“I know it’s not a matter of if’ they will be caught but a matter of when.” 

In both cases, Dearborn Police were able to arrive on the spot quickly, taking between just 40 seconds to a minute and a half to get to the scene. But workers at Detroit gas stations and other businesses who’ve also been targeted by robbers toting heavy weapons haven’t had anywhere near the same response, with some saying that it takes several hours for police to arrive. 

In response to the Dearborn incidents, which occurred near the Detroit border, and the Detroit crisis, Deputy Director of Homeland Security and Emergency Management for Wayne County, Samer Jaafar, was among those who set up a meeting featuring local law enforcement officials and concerned business owners at Byblos Banquets on Wednesday Dec. 7. Wayne County Deputy Chief Mike Jaafar, also was in attendance. Discussions were held on what could be done to address the problem despite staffing issues with Detroit police and a continued crime wave likely caused by the poor economy. 

The main areas of focus were on what measures can be taken to improve response times in Detroit, the importance of having a stronger police presence, especially in problem areas, the possibility of having other government officials, Mayor Dave Bing, members of Congress or others step in to help combat the problems, and forming a task force comprised of local, state, and federal officials including the FBI in order to focus specifically on these crimes.

Samer Jaafar said that there have been about 8 or 9 recent smash and grab robberies in Detroit where robbers have driven large vehicles right through windows before making cash grabs, oftentimes chaining ATMs to their trucks and driving off with them. The robbers often carry heavy weaponry just as the Dearborn ones did, which has made Jaafar concerned about the safety of all parties involved. 

“The meeting was phenomenal, we discussed these issues and many owners said that ‘this is exactly what happened in our business,'” Samer Jaafar said. 

“These individuals (robbers) are very well-versed at what they do, we think they could possibly even be military people due to their appearance and how they operated.

“I’m afraid that even if the police did pull up on time, they could have been killed because they simply don’t have the firepower to confront them.” 

Chaker Aoun of the Tri-County Business Committee, which works to protect and promote area businesses and to advocate to government officials on their behalf, was among those who attended the meeting. He said that everyone should be on guard considering the current economic situation.

“I wouldn’t be surprised to see it come over to Dearborn or other surrounding cities because of the economic situation,” he said. “We’re looking for any help we can get from anybody (including Homeland Security and the Wayne County Sheriff’s Department) because this is not just affecting business, it’s affecting society at large.”

Another meeting is scheduled to take place sometime in the next two weeks according to Samer Jaafar, with officials from any and all available law enforcement agencies that wish to participate. He added that Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano pledged his support to help protect the citizens of the county. 

Police Chief Haddad offered his tips for business owners.

“I recommend that if they see people who don’t seem to fit or someone coming in and not doing a transaction (that could be a sign) that someone is coming in ahead of a robbery,” he said. “We should use our best common sense and instincts in those kinds of cases and would not recommend opposing (armed robbers) in any way.”  

Anyone with more information on the Dearborn robberies is urged to call the city police tip line at 313.943.3012.