Niles shooting suspect facing more charges

Published 9:29 am Wednesday, March 25, 2015

A Niles man suspected of shooting his girlfriend after a domestic dispute Sunday in Niles is also facing charges in St. Joseph County, Indiana.

The Berrien County Sheriff’s Department named Michael Jerome Exom, III, as the suspect in the shooting, which occurred around 3 p.m. at Aaron’s Mini Storage on North 5th Street in Niles Township.

Exom remained at large as of Tuesday afternoon and is wanted on an attempted murder charge in Berrien County.

Capt. Robert Boyce, of the Berrien County Sheriff’s Department, said Tuesday afternoon that the 24-year-old victim remained hospitalized in stable condition and is expected to survive. She was originally listed in critical condition.

On Monday, the St. Joseph County Prosecutor’s Office in Indiana announced that it had charged Exom with felony domestic battery for events that occurred March 13 — two days before the shooting.

According to the prosecutor’s office, Exom allegedly followed the mother of his child — also the victim of Sunday’s shooting — to her car after their son’s birthday at Strikes and Spares in Mishawaka, Indiana, on Friday. Exom then allegedly grabbed the victim with such force that he ripped her clothes and left a mark on her body. All of this happened in front of their child, according to the prosecutor’s office.

Police have told the public not to approach the suspect, who is believed to be armed and dangerous.

Anyone with information about the crime or about Exom’s whereabouts should contact the Berrien County Sheriff’s Department at (269) 983-7141 or detectives@berriencounty.org.