ST. CLAIR SHORES, Mich. (WXYZ) — A community is rallying around a man who was nearly stabbed to death at a St. Clair Shores bus stop. He was one of two victims in a case that spanned multiple cities in Macomb County on Wednesday.
The family of Robert Baecke says he’s now out of the hospital and recovering at home after being randomly attacked on his way to work. The suspect, 31-year-old Shane Burns, is facing eight felony counts stemming from the attacks.
Baecke's employer is now rallying community support. Todd Kulling and Justin Giordano are both owners of the Pool Guys LLC in Chesterfield, where Baecke has been a valued employee for six years.
“It hits home, you know," Kulling said. "He’s like a brother to us, son, anything like that.”
"He’s been a backbone of the company ever since," Giordano said. "He's been kind of my compadre, my right hand man, if you will.”
Giordano says when Baecke was hired six years ago, Baecke assured them he would make it to work despite not always having reliable transportation. He held up to his word.
"He had a vehicle at one point and the upkeep just got to be too much, so that went to the wayside, and he was back taking the bus this year,” Giordano said. "Always here, always on time, always staying after, whatever is asked of him. He’s a dedicated worker.”
"Robert's a guy that would give you the shirt off his back," Kulling said. "The type of guy that wouldn’t want anyone to do something for him."
According to the Macomb County prosecutor, Baecke was at the Barton Street and Harper Avenue bus stop in St. Clair Shores Wednesday morning heading to work when Burns approached him and stabbed him multiple times in the mid-section.
Baecke struggled with his attacker, who then fled in his car. Police connected the attack to another one just minutes earlier at a Belle Tire on Gratiot Avenue in Roseville. That's where Burns allegedly approached Cheryl Ryan-Parsley as she was filling her tire with air. Burns then fatally stabbed her multiple times and slit her throat.
Prosecutors say both of the attacks were random.
“This is just ruthless," Ryan-Parsley's daughter Jennifer Ryan said on Wednesday. "I mean, who does this? Who does this to someone who was just minding their own business?”
Burns was arrested six hours later in Warren after a lengthy search between multiple police agencies. In his car, police found a shotgun, a 9 mm firearm and a large amount of ammunition.
After his arrest at the Roseville Police Department, prosecutors say Burns was biting at himself. An officer tried to stop him, which led to a struggle and Burns grabbing a knife from the officer, using it to slit his own wrist.
Burns is now facing eight felony counts and has a $10 million bond. His criminal history goes back more than a decade in California, where the Santa Cruz Superior Court has nearly 40 cases on him from traffic violations to multiple felony arrests.
The Pool Guys started a GoFundMe page for Baecke to help with his bills and hopefully get him a car, so he no longer has to take the bus. They say Baecke was always there for them and now, it’s their chance to return the favor.
“I cant believe the outpouring of support we’re receiving on our end,” Giordano said. “Somebody already reached out to donate a vehicle to us, so it’s just tremendous — it really is.”
"It was right away like, do what we can for him because he deserves it," Kulling said. "We just want to show him that we love him and care for him and we’re there for him.”
