Family and friends of an Oakland County restaurant food server are mourning his loss after he was killed over the weekend as a result of high-speed police chase that ended in Warren.
Relatives identified the victim as Alex Habib, 28, a married father of two from Madison Heights, who died early Saturday in a car crash involving a Roseville police officer.
Warren police Lt. John Grajewski on Sunday confirmed the fatality, which remains under investigation.
According to Warren police, Roseville police initiated a vehicle pursuit around 3 a.m. Saturday that ended in a multi-car crash in the Van Dyke Avenue/11 Mile Road area.
Further details were not immediately available.
Roseville police administrators did not respond Sunday morning to a request for comment.
Habib apparently was an innocent bystander who was struck by one of the vehicles involved in the pursuit, according to friends.
He was married to Danielle and the two have two young children, 1-year-old Eleanora and Santiago, who is 3 months old.
“His life revolved around his family — he was their strength, their protector, and their constant source of support,” relatives said in a GoFundMe request.
“Alex worked tirelessly to provide for Danielle and the kids, both emotionally and financially. He was a man of deep love, quiet strength, and unwavering dedication — someone who gave selflessly and always showed up for the people he loved. His loss is felt not just by his wife and children, but by all who knew him.”
Habib worked as a server at Jim Brady’s restaurant on Main Street in Royal Oak.
According to a social media message posted by management, the Jim Brady’s team of workers is “heartbroken” over his passing.
“We have lost a beloved member of our team,” the Facebook post said. “Alex Habib, who was loved by all those who came into contact with him, has been taken from all of those close to him far too early…The family appreciates any and all that we can do for them. Thank you from the bottom of our heart.”
As of Sunday afternoon, the GoFundMe effort has raised in excess of $55,000.
The Fraser City Council voted Thursday night to grant the region’s troubled waste hauler a contract extension that includes a 24% rate hike despite ongoing complaints from homeowners about chronic service delays.
Clinton Township-based Priority Waste received a three-year extension of its existing $1.1 million contract, with 3% annual raises each year, according to the city’s Department of Public Works.
In a memo to the council, DPW Superintendent Rob Barrett said there’s not enough time to solicit bids from other waste hauling firms before the city’s contract expires Sept. 12.
“Unfortunately, we recently discovered that most waste disposal companies require several months to prepare a bid, receive several months to prepare a bid, receive the award, and invest in trucks and personnel to provide the service,” Barrett said in recommending the extension.
Councilmembers said they were frustrated by the lack of bids given Priority Waste’s numerous complaints over various services. Mayor Michael Lesich said he “reluctantly” voted along with the rest of the council.
Fraser’s approval marked the second one this week for Priority Waste, which earlier this week gained support from Orchard Lake in Oakland County.
Daniel Venet, the company’s vice president of municipal sales, said the new agreement in Fraser follows ongoing discussions between the city and Priority Waste over improving the company’s performance.
DPW Supervisor Joe Gregory distributes bid sheets to members of the Fraser City Council. (MITCH HOTTS — THE MACOMB DAILY)
“From where we started a year ago, we were all in a chaotic moment of stress,” he said. “We put a lot on your shoulders — the DPW staff, yourselves, and the administration. It’s not something I took lightly.”
During Thursday’s meeting in Fraser, Barrett, a former longtime Oak Park employee, apologized to the council for not addressing the matter sooner and said the city administration will request proposals for the service earlier next time the contract is nearing its end.
According to the memo, the extension includes a starting rate of $17.50 per month for residential garbage service, which includes compost and recycling, with a 3% annual increase for each of the three years.
The DPW head said the company’s price of $1.12 million a year for Fraser is “quite fair” by comparison to other bids in local communities that were received recently awarded:
Harrison Township — $1.2 million
Shelby Township — $1.29 million
New Haven — $300,000
“That satisfies me that’s a fair number (in the bid),” Barrett told the council.
Fraser has approximately 5,750 trash pickups, 4,830 recycling pickups, and 3,950 compost pickups per month, according to the city’s DPW.
Priority Waste took over residential accounts from GFL Environmental on July 1, 2024. The company now handles trash services for about 700,000 residents in dozens of communities in Genesee, Livingston, Macomb, Oakland, and Wayne counties.
Prior to that, Fraser had an eight-year contract with GFL, which some questioned. While a councilmember at the time, Lesich voted against the move.
Troubled transition
But almost from the day the sale of GFL to Priority Waste was announced in July 2024, the company has been plagued with troubles related to the transition.
Over the past year, Priority Waste has been facing a barrage of complaints from numerous communities over missed pickups and other service issues.
Residents and municipal leaders have reported days-long delays in trash and recycling collection, scattered trash, difficulty reaching the company. Company officials say they were left many “decrepit” and aging garbage trucks.
Company officials said a load of new trucks have been ordered with final delivery expected around November.
Service improving
Venet said Priority Waste is making steady improvements every month.
He talked about a former GFL official who advised him: “One thing he said to me about Fraser was that the people are understanding and forgiving, but they will hold you accountable when you fail. And things were not good for us those first three months.”
Priority Waste officials thought the problems would have leveled off over the winter. Instead, Venet said, it took three months to sell the old fleet of vehicles. At the same time, the company continued to see an increase in the volume of waste left out for disposal, which “doesn’t help,” he said.
Venet believes as the company continues to chip away, things should get “more like normal.” by January, both in Fraser and other communities.
He also acknowledged concerns about the company’s street sanitation workers.
“My stance is people do make mistakes so we can allow for some variance if a mistake occurs but if it’s an occurrence of choice or it’s habitual or a continuous issue, the employee’s going to get reprimanded and disciplined through our protocols,” Venet said.
He told the council that problems are certain to happen in “an industry with 1 million touches a year.
“But it’s how you respond, correct, and move forward,” Venet said.
A QR code sheet to enter complaints to Priority Waste is affixed to the front door of Fraser City Hall. (MITCH HOTTS — THE MACOMB DAILY)
The extension comes as Macomb Township’s board voted to issue a formal notice of default that could result in fines against the company as early as next month.
A spokesperson for the company has said they faced obstacles involving the number of GFL garbage trucks Priority Waste received in the sale and technology issues. Many vehicles were broken down and required immediate repairs, while a camera system the company uses to monitor work conditions had problems staying operational.
Dan Venet, vice president of municipal sales for Priority Waste, takes notes during Thursday’s meeting with the Fraser City Council. (MITCH HOTTS — THE MACOMB DAILY)
The Macomb County Sheriff’s Office is investigating after a body was found Thursday afternoon in the Clinton River near Shadyside Park in Mount Clemens.
Investigators were not able to provide much information as the corpse was decomposed. It was not immediately known if the remains were a male or female, or if foul play was suspected, deputies said.
Someone called 911 to report the body in the river under the Southbound Gratiot Avenue bridge around 2:25 p.m. The caller said two feet were visible in the middle of the river.
“He also stated there was a lot of debris in the water,” deputies said in a news release.
According to the release, deputies responded and confirmed a body was located underwater. The Sheriff’s Marine Division arrived to assist and remove the remains from the water.
Investigators said the body will be transported to the Macomb County Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy to determine the cause of death.
The investigation is ongoing, and further updates will be provided as they become available.
The Macomb County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a body that was found in the Clinton River under the Southbound Gratiot bridge in Mount Clemens Thursday afternoon.
(MACOMB DAILY FILE PHOTO)
President Donald Trump’s campaign has released details about a rally scheduled for Tuesday in Macomb County to celebrate the 100th day of his second term.
The campaign said in an email the event will be held at 6 p.m. April 29th at the Sports & Expo Center on the South Campus of Macomb Community College on 12 Mile and Hayes roads in Warren.
Tickets for the rally, which is open to the public, are available here.
Doors are set to open at 1:45 p.m. Remarks by various elected officials will begin at 6 p.m. followed by Trump’s comments, according to the campaign.
Last week, the White House announced Trump’s visit to Michigan, his first since being elected president to a second, nonconsecutive term in office. He won the state of Michigan in both the 2016 and 2024 elections, but lost the state and the election in 2020.
The past three months have seen the president’s whirlwind approach to covering trade, international alliances and a tariffs program that has led to consumer confidence plummeting, stock markets convulsing and investors losing confidence in the credibility of Trump’s policies.
Since taking office for his second term, the president has been looking to overhaul the federal government as he attempts to cut jobs and agencies, end diversity programs, deport immigrants and launch hefty tariffs that have threatened to upend the global economic order but which he says are needed to force fairer trade deals.
In a news release, organizers said the MCC event is intended to be a “celebration of the most successful and monumental first 100 days of any administration in history.”
Macomb County was one of the southeast Michigan communities where voters favored Trump.
In November 2024, he won Michigan’s 15 electoral college votes, flipping the state again in a victory over Democrat Kamala Harris.
In Macomb, voters chose Trump over Harris, 284,660 votes to 214,977 votes, for a nearly 14-percentage point victory margin.
Trump’s favor in Michigan has wavered over the years, but his supporters have kept the vote counts close. He defeated Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton by 10,704 Michigan votes in 2016 and then lost to Democratic nominee Joe Biden by 154,188 Michigan votes four years later.
His speech is expected to touch on tariffs and an an update on Selfridge Air National Guard Base in Harrison Township. He has said in recent weeks that he was working with Michigan leaders to keep the military installation “open, strong, thriving” and hinted about the possibility of new fighter jets coming.
Earlier this month, Trump made reference to Selfridge as he was meeting with Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in the Oval Office. Whitmer and other Michigan officials have long pushed for a new fighter mission to replace the outgoing A-10 squadron at Selfridge.
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters as he and first lady Melania Trump depart on Marine One from the South Lawn of the White House, Friday, April 25, 2025, in Washington. The President and first lady will be traveling to Rome and the Vatican to attend the funeral for Pope Francis. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
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