Police ID suspected gunman fatally shot at Detroit-area church

Charles E. Ramirez, The Detroit News on Jun 23, 2025

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DETROIT — A suspected gunman fatally shot at a Wayne church Sunday by a security guard has been identified as a 31-year-old Romulus man, police said.

Officials said the suspect was Brian Anthony Browning, and the investigation into the shooting is ongoing.

Authorities said Browning was armed with an AR-15 style rifle, more than a dozen fully loaded magazines, a semi-automatic handgun with an extended magazine, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition.

Detectives said Browning's mother is a member of the church and he has attended services there two or three times over the last year.

Officials said they obtained a search warrant for the suspect's house and seized more rifles, several more semi-automatic handguns, and a large amount of ammunition.

Browning had no previous contacts with Wayne Police or a criminal history, investigators said. They said he may have been suffering from a mental health crisis.

"There is no evidence to believe that this act of violence has any connection with the conflict in the Middle East," officials said in a statement

Authorities said the shooting happened at about 11 a.m. at the CrossPointe Community Church, 36125 Glenwood Road near Newburgh Road.

Wayne police Chief Ryan Strong said a 31-year-old Romulus man began driving erratically outside the church. Strong said the man exited the vehicle in a tactical vest, armed with a long gun and a handgun, then began shooting at the church.

CrossPointe Community Church Senior Pastor Bobby Kelly Jr. said on Sunday that a church member noticed the shooting and drove over the man with a pickup truck.

"The church security team was alerted by the gunfire and reacted quickly to engage the suspect outside the main entrance doors of the church," police said in a statement late Sunday. "The security team locked the front doors and exchanged gunfire with the suspect, who was shot and killed by a member of the security team."

Officers arrived and performed life-saving measures, but medics pronounced the suspect dead at the scene.

Authorities said a security guard for the church was shot in the leg, taken to the hospital, and is listed in stable condition after surgery.

"We are grateful for the heroic actions of the church's staff members, who undoubtedly saved many lives and prevented a large-scale mass shooting," Wayne Police Chief Ryan Strong said in a statement.