Dalton, who has confessed to his crimes, opened fire on young mother Tiana Carruthers outside a residential complex, leaving her seriously wounded on a playground filled with children, including one of her own.
Confessed Kalamazoo shooter Jason Dalton.
A mistaken address from a customer may have led Uber driver Jason Dalton to the first victim of his alleged shooting rampagein Kalamazoo, Mich. last month, according to investigators.
Dalton, who has confessed to his crimes, opened fire on young mother Tiana Carruthers outside a residential complex, leaving her seriously wounded on a playground filled with children, including one of her own. That shooting started a reign of terror in which Dalton spent the night allegedly shooting people at random — while still picking up Uber customers. Six people died before he was arrested.
Carruthers apparently came into the killer’s sights thanks to an Uber request from a nearby customer. The woman called for a ride at the Meadows Townhomes complex at 5:15 p.m. — shortly before the first shooting. But she soon followed up with a text correcting the address, asking the driver to come to the complex’s main office instead of its townhouse unit, according to investigators’ documents obtained by the Detroit Free Press.
Dalton arrived near the townhouses anyway, and witnesses said he appeared to erratically drive around the area for a few minutes. He then stopped and waved over Carruthers, according to the documents. Dalton called out “Have you seen Mazie?” before firing up to 10 shots — striking Carruthers four times.
Witnesses saidCarruthers, 25, warned the other people on the playground to run for safety even after she took a bullet. She survived the shooting after several surgeries, and doctors told WOOD-TVshe is making an “amazing" recovery.
It’s unclear if “Mazie” was the woman who asked for the ride.
Tiana Carruthers, 25, was the first victim of the rampage that left six people dead. A mistaken address from an Uber customer may have led Jason Dalton to her.
Minutes after the first attack, Dalton called the customer who brought him to the area and abruptly announced he wouldn’t be picking her up.
He “was rude and told her that something had come up and he could not do the pick up,” according to the report.
The woman simply requested another driver.
Dalton went on to allegedly gun down a father and son at a car dealership, and then four women outside a Cracker Barrel restaurant, while still doing his duties as an Uber driver.
He later blamed his massacreon the ride-sharing app, claiming it took over his mind “like artificial intelligence that can tap into your body.” Dalton is now charged with six counts of murder, and his wife has filed for divorce.