A 24-year-old white man was beaten to death Monday morning after getting into a minor fender bender on Detroit’s west side.
Tyler Wingate, a resident of Berkley, Michigan, was driving at 1:30 a.m. on Monday near the 13500 block of Livernois Avenue when he bumped into a car in which Lawrence James Davis, 23, was either a driver or a passenger.
According to the Detroit police, Davis jumped out of the auto and assaulted Wingate by kicking and punching him repeatedly. Once Wingate was lying unresponsive on the ground, Davis fled the scene on foot.
Surveillance video from a nearby gas station allegedly shows Davis walking up to Wingate and delivering a devastating punch to the head. Wingate then dropped to the ground, and when he tried to get up, Davis delivered more swift kicks and punches to the stunned victim. Wingate finally fell to the ground and never moved again.
At least one witness said the attack was “terrible.”
“It’s terrible. It’s terrible. That could be anybody’s family member. You don’t want that to happen to anyone,” Juan Williams said according to Fox News. “It’s unfortunate, very unfortunate. No one wants to see a life lost.”
Wingate was pronounced dead at the scene, officials said.
A GoFundMe page has been started in Wingate’s name. By press time, the page raised more than $44,000.
Officials have anyone with information to contact the Detroit Police Department Homicide Unit at 313-596-2260.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.