The fiancee of a man who wounded four officers in a gun attack at a Detroit police precinct before being fatally shot said Thursday that she does not believe claims that he had abducted a 13-year-old girl and held her captive for days, and accused authorities of trying to tarnish his name.
Police have released little information about the investigation, and many questions remain about why Lamar Moore walked into the 6th precinct Sunday and began shooting. Adding to the mystery is a fire that gutted Moore's home two days after the shooting, which officials say was deliberately set.
Detroit Sgt. Eren Stephens, who said earlier in the week that Moore was being investigated in connection with a sexual attack on a minor, confirmed that police are investigating allegations that Moore had kept the girl chained to a toilet at a home in the city's northwest side. Stephens didn't specify whether his home — also on the city's northwest side — was the same one where the teen claimed to have been held captive.
Stephanie Freeman, Moore's fiancee, said she does not believe he was involved in an abduction and sexual assault, and that she spent the night at his home the Thursday before the police station shooting. Other than Moore and herself, there was no one in the bathroom or any other room in the house, Freeman said.
"The house is little. You can't miss the bathroom because you have to go past it to get to the bedroom," she said.
Detroit police have declined to speculate on Moore's motive. They indicated not long after the attack that Moore, 38, may have been upset about a separate criminal case involving a relative.
"They have taken Mo's name (Moore) and run that thing through the mud," said Freeman, 40, who said she had known Moore at least 14 years.
The two started dating in April 2001 and have a 4-year-old son, Lamar Jr. They planned to get married on Valentine's Day, Freeman said. Moore was then to move into Freeman's home, where Lamar Jr. lives.
Freeman, a home care aide, denied reports that Moore was ordered to pay child support.
"I didn't want no child support," she said. "He didn't have to pay child support. He was not ordered to pay child support, and there was no custody struggle between us. There was no need."
She said Moore had recently met with a mediator with the Friend of the Court in Wayne County and agreed to pay off the $600 balance of a medical bill from their son's birth.
Moore was unlicensed, but worked as a carpenter and handyman, Freeman said.
"He was still getting little work," she said. "We don't live no lavish lifestyle. We make it every day. Lamar, if he came short of anything, I would have given him my money. If he felt like he was under pressure I would have given him my check."
Authorities are investigating how Moore obtained the 20-gauge shotgun used in the police station shooting. An ex-convict who federal authorities said bought the gun told the Free Press, WXYZ-TV and WJBK-TV that he didn't even know Moore.
Elijah Gayden, who has a 1995 cocaine conviction, said he owned the gun for about three weeks before selling it. Gayden is charged with illegally possessing the gun. According to a court filing, Gayden told agents he bought the weapon for $200 from another man last spring.
Gayden appeared in federal court on the gun charge Tuesday and was released. His next court date is Feb. 9.
