On the evening of December 18, 2025, Alvin Leon Echols, 47, was working as a Salvation Army bell ringer outside the Kroger at 36430 Ford Road in Westland, Michigan when a gunman approached and opened fire in what police later described as a deliberate ambush. Echols was shot multiple times, ran into the store and collapsed near the self-checkout area. First responders and police rendered aid, but Echols died at the scene and the store was placed on lockdown while officers conducted their investigation.

Westland Police say the shooting was not random and stemmed from a prior relationship between the victim and the shooter. On December 19, 2025, police arrested 37-year-old Rene Miguel Zambrana of Detroit and charged him with first-degree premeditated murder and felony firearm possession. He was arraigned December 22, stood mute and a not guilty plea was entered on his behalf; he was remanded without bond and further court proceedings were scheduled.

Did anyone in the Westland area see activity near the Ford Road Kroger that evening or know Echols or the people involved?