Instructor, Man Found Shot To Death At Martial Arts Institute
Bodies Discovered When Students Arrived For Class
POSTED: 1:26 pm EST March 11, 2004
UPDATED: 7:13 pm EST March 11, 2004
The bodies of two men were found inside an East Lansing martial arts institute Thursday.
Police identified one of the men as Jeffrey Friedlis, 29, an instructor at The Institute Of Traditional Asian Martial Arts at 130 W. Grand River and Abbott, near the campus of Michigan State University, Local 4 learned.
The other victim was described as a man in his late 20s or 30s.
One of the men suffered multiple gunshot wounds, according to police.
The bodies were discovered in the front offices of the institute by students who arrived at the building for a class around noon, according to the station's reports.
East Lansing police and Michigan State Police obtained a warrant to search the business around 4 p.m.
Investigators say although they do not know the exact time, they believe the institute was open for business when the shooting took place.
When questioned by police, a neighboring business owner reported hearing a loud sound.
"One of the owners thought they heard a backfire shortly before the call came in, but we haven't confirmed whether or not that was actually gunshot," said Capt. Juli Lieber, of the East Lansing Police Department.
According to the institute's Web site, Friedlis was the director of training at the institute. He was also the owner of Dragon Supply Company -- a retail operation specializing in martial arts supplies. Friedlis studied martial arts since 1984 and had been teaching since 1997. He moved his class into the Institute of Traditional Asian Martial Arts in the fall of 2000.
Police had closed a stretch of Grand River to traffic Thursday afternoon as they searched for evidence at the scene, according to Local 4 reports.
Detectives told Local 4 they have a theory about the motive in the crime, but they have yet to confirm their suspicions.
There are no suspects in custody, according to East Lansing police.
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