GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A Grand Rapids couple in their late 80s and early 70s cannot stay in their Burton Heights home after finding it heavily damaged by police officers searching for a suspect this past Sunday.
The Liptrots found their belongings scattered across upstairs bedrooms, multiple holes in the plaster walls, and the lingering smell of pepper spray in the basement.
"I never seen my dad cry until that day," Michelle Armstrong said.
Armstrong said her parents have lived on Darwin Avenue for 31 years but are currently unable to be inside their home.
"That wasn't like that. None of this was like that," Armstrong said. "This was actually the bedroom. So this is where this mattress was. Is over here. This was a bedroom. This is the bathroom, and this is why I said you can see under the stairs when you.”
I asked to step out of the basement during the interview because of the lingering effects of the pepper spray.
I reached out to the Grand Rapids Police Department for comment. A city spokesperson said officers were responding to a domestic violence case between a man and a woman outside the home Sunday. The male suspect, who lives in the home, claimed to have a firearm and threatened officers.
"I get it that you're looking for somebody. I don't take away from that you have to do your job, but you didn't have to do it so violently. That's the point that I'm making. They didn't have to do it so violently. These are elderly people that live here," Armstrong said.
According to Grand Rapids Police, the suspect was not found after officers went through the home. The suspect is not in custody and the investigation is ongoing.
Interim Police Chief Joe Trigg said there were home renovations taking place at the residence.
"There were areas behind the drywall and other atypical locations where an adult could be hiding that required investigation. This is not an attempt to avoid accountability for the damage that occurred," Trigg said.
Trigg encourages the family to submit a claim through the city’s Risk Management department, which can determine if the city is liable for the damage.
"I think that there was a way to go in and look for somebody without destroying everything that a person works hard for," Armstrong said.
Family has set up a GoFundMe here.
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