Crime
Witness Says Friend’s Son and Another Shopper Helped Subdue Suspect in Walmart Stabbing Incident in Traverse City
TRAVERSE CITY, MI — A major law enforcement and emergency response was launched Saturday evening following a mass stabbing at the Walmart Supercenter in Traverse City.
The incident occurred just before 5:00 p.m., prompting a Level 2 Mass Casualty Incident (MCI) declaration as multiple victims were reported.
According to local officials and eyewitness accounts, at least eleven individuals were stabbed during the attack, with several suffering critical injuries.
Tourniquets were reportedly applied at the scene to control severe bleeding, and CPR was performed on at least one victim in cardiac arrest.
The total number of victims remains unconfirmed as the investigation continues.
Witnesses described a chaotic and horrifying scene inside the store, with panicked customers and employees running in all directions after a man armed with a knife began attacking shoppers at random in various departments.
Victims were reported across multiple sections of the store, including the produce and grocery areas.
Grand Traverse 911 issued a public alert asking residents to avoid the area near Walmart and Crossing Circle, emphasizing that “there is no danger to the public at this time” as the suspect had been taken into custody shortly after the attack.
Eyewitness statements offer further insight into the events. Kathryn Ann Clark told Channel2 Now that her friend’s son and another shopper helped subdue the suspect before police arrived.
Walmart employees confirmed that no shots were fired during the incident. Tasha Nash, who works at the store, stated, “Me and my sister work there. The whole store started screaming and running. There was a guy with a knife—he stabbed six people. I saw someone stabbed in the eye.”
Amber Paull reported seeing a man she described as “a foreign guy” randomly attack people in the produce section. “An African American man pulled a hero move and drew his pistol to try and stop him,” she said. “But then people screamed, and employees shouted for everyone to run, and the suspect slipped away into the crowd.”
Suspect is a Michigan resident, police confirmed.
Among the injured were an elderly woman and a child, according to initial accounts.
Law enforcement agencies have not yet released the suspect’s identity or disclosed a potential motive.
The investigation remains active, and officials are working to confirm details regarding the number of victims and the suspect’s background.
Authorities continue to urge the public to avoid the area as the scene is processed.
Updates will be provided as more verified information becomes available.
Crime
Mustapha Kharbouch Now-Deleted 2024 Manifesto Published in Institute for Palestine Studies Recovered
Brown University has removed multiple online references to student activist Mustapha Kharbouch in the days following a deadly campus shooting, a move that has drawn public attention amid heightened online speculation—despite law enforcement officials confirming that no suspects or persons of interest have been identified in the investigation.
Archived versions of Brown University webpages show that Kharbouch, a first-year student at the time, was previously listed in several university-affiliated roles, including as a student assistant and Cultural Programming Coordinator connected to the Global Brown Center.
His academic interests were described as focusing on International and Public Affairs and Anthropology, with involvement in Middle East–focused academic, cultural, and student programming.
Those pages are no longer accessible, and Kharbouch’s social media accounts have also been deactivated.
A verified buyer from the United States with the name “Mustapha K.” reviewed a 9MM muzzle brake through the Wing Tactical website on December 29th, 2024 — the same caliber used in the Brown shooting.
There are approximately a few hundred people in the entire United States with that first name + last initial combination.
University officials have not issued a public explanation for the removal of the online profiles.
The changes occurred as online speculation intensified in the immediate aftermath of the shooting, with social media users circulating screenshots of archived university pages and past writings associated with Kharbouch.
Among the materials resurfaced by online users was a 2024 essay authored by Kharbouch and published by the Institute for Palestine Studies as part of a special student essay series titled Genocide in Gaza: Student Essays — Brown University Encampment 2024.
The essay, titled “I Hear the Voice of My Ancestors Calling: From the Camps to the Campus,” was published on August 13, 2024, months before the shooting. The piece is a first-person reflective essay examining Palestinian identity, intergenerational memory, student activism, and questions of hope amid displacement, war, and protest.
The article includes poetic excerpts adapted from “Ancestors Song,” a chant popularized during student-led Palestine solidarity actions at Brown University, and documents Kharbouch’s participation in campus organizing efforts, including sit-ins, hunger strikes, rallies, and the Brown Gaza Solidarity Encampment.
The essay situates these experiences within a broader discussion of decolonial thought, feminist theory, and Palestinian history, including reflections on the 1948 Nakba and the author’s family history as a third-generation stateless Palestinian refugee raised in Lebanon.
The content of the essay is ideological, autobiographical, and academic in nature.
There is no reference to violence on campus, nor any indication of intent or planning related to criminal activity.
The Institute for Palestine Studies has not issued any statement suggesting the piece is under review or connected to the shooting.
Despite widespread online conjecture, law enforcement agencies, including the FBI and Providence Police, have not named Mustapha Kharbouch as a suspect or person of interest, and have publicly stated that there is no evidence linking him to the shooting.
Investigators have emphasized that the case remains active and that conclusions are being guided strictly by verified evidence.
Authorities have cautioned against drawing inferences from online speculation, warning that unsubstantiated claims can compromise investigations and cause undue harm to individuals not implicated by facts.
Media analysts and campus observers have suggested that Brown University’s decision to remove online references may have been taken as a protective or precautionary measure, particularly as misinformation and harassment proliferated across social media platforms following the attack.
Similar actions have been taken by institutions in other high-profile incidents to limit doxxing, targeted harassment, or the misinterpretation of publicly available biographical information during periods of heightened tension.
Brown University has not confirmed whether the removals were temporary, administrative, or safety-related in nature.
Authorities continue to urge the public to rely on confirmed information released by law enforcement and to avoid amplifying unverified narratives.
As of the most recent update, no arrests have been announced, no individuals have been publicly identified as suspects, and the investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with credible information related to the shooting has been asked to contact investigators directly.