Man pleads guilty in fatal shooting at Detroit gas station; The victim’s family speaks

DETROIT (WXYZ) — It’s been nearly a year and a half since a triple shooting at a Detroit gas station left one man dead and two others injured.

The shooting occurred in May 2023 at a Mobil gas station near McNichols Road and The Lodge.

The three victims were locked in the gas station by the store’s clerk while he and the gunman argued over a theft that police said was worth a total of about $3.

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Gregory Karlos Samuel Kelly, 37, was fatally shot. Two other people were injured. One of those victims was Kelly’s best friend, David Langston.

On Thursday, suspected shooter Samuel McCray pleaded guilty to the charges.

“I feel like my son’s death is somewhat justified,” said Marilyn Fortner, Kelly’s mother.

Fortner felt a sense of relief when he left court Thursday and saw McCray plead the case.

“It was very traumatic for us. “I just never could have imagined life without him,” Fortner said.

She feared that she would have to go to trial for her son’s death.

“I don’t need to relive the video. “I don’t have to worry about seeing him extensively every day during the trial because it’s hard to see someone who has taken a loved one away from you,” Fortner said.

Kelly was a father of three and Fortner’s only child. The mother of Kelly’s children, Kaiyah Simon, said it was really stressful for her.

“My kids just hurt every day. They miss their father. They love their father so much. Her father loved her,” Simon said. “They miss him every day. They hurt every day.”

Fortner says admitting guilt also prevents the other two victims from reliving the day when their lives flashed before their eyes. Fortner said Langston watched as her son fell to the ground and died.

“David is suffering a lot,” Fortner said.

But Fortner says the guilty plea will also provide relief for Langston.

“With this decision, we bring closure to some of the things he went through,” she said.

Fortner says she hopes the shooter gets the maximum when sentencing.

“Yeah, my son is looking down from heaven like he’s saying thank you, Ma, you did it,” Fortner said.

Sentencing in the case will take place next month at the Wayne County Criminal Justice Center.