Over Labor Day Weekend, 19-year-old teenager Desmond Thomas Burgen was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder and felony firearm charges after allegedly killing his mother and her boyfriend in their Michigan home on Woodside Street near Moross and Kelly road.
According to MLive, Burgen’s mother, 45, and her boyfriend, 52, were from Harper Woods and Ypsilanti, respectively. After his arrest, Burgen was arraigned in 32A District Court and had his first court appearance on September 14. His bond was set at $1 million cash.
Burgen was found at the scene, reportedly hiding in the home’s basement, threatening suicide before police could talk him out of the house on September 2. Officers who took him into custody recalled Burgen spat in their faces and laughed as he was put into the police car.
An investigation of the scene revealed that Burgen shot the couple multiple times at around 1 PM on the day of the crime. His mother’s boyfriend, Reginald Farmer Jr., was dead upon police arrival, and Khalilah Elam was transported to the hospital before succumbing to her injuries.
A neighborhood witness described the moments that police breached the house with Burgen inside to Click On Detroit.
“We were talking, and we heard two shots, two large pops, and we both looked down there at the same time when we saw the gentleman running from the side of the house,” said Carl Williams. “The gentlemen they put into custody, I guess that’s who it was.”
The police later said that it was the sound of SWAT breaching the home with flashbangs that the neighbor heard. “What they probably heard was the flash bangs when the swat team made entry,” said Jason Hammerle “That’s a loud grenade-type noise they likely heard, and I do recall hearing two of those go off.”
Jason Hammerle continued, “We are not yet aware of motive and are awaiting autopsy results to confirm the cause of death [and] Our thoughts are with the families of the victims at this time.”
