McDonald's worker arraigned in fatal stabbing of manager at Detroit-area restaurant

Key Points

• 26-year-old Afeni Badu Muhammad was arraigned on charges of first-degree premeditated murder and carrying a dangerous weapon with unlawful intent after allegedly returning to the Eastpointe McDonald's through the employee entrance.
• Manager Jennifer Harris, 39, was stabbed multiple times and killed; a legally armed customer fired a shot to interrupt the attack and held Muhammad at gunpoint until police arrived.
• The victim leaves behind six children, a loss described by Macomb County Prosecutor Peter Lucido as senseless and heartbreaking.
• Muhammad pleaded not guilty at arraignment, is held on $25 million bond, and is scheduled for a probable cause conference on July 23 and a preliminary examination on July 30.

EASTPOINTE, Mich. (AP) — A 26-year-old woman has been arraigned in the fatal stabbing of her manager after being told to leave early from her shift following an argument at a Detroit-area McDonald's restaurant.

Afeni Badu Muhammad was arraigned Friday on first-degree premeditated murder and carrying a dangerous weapon with unlawful intent, the Macomb County prosecutor's office said in a release.

After being told to leave the Eastpointe restaurant Thursday morning, a masked Muhammad allegedly returned and entered through the employee entrance, according to the prosecutor's office.

Eastpointe is just northeast of Detroit.

Jennifer Harris, 39, was stabbed multiple times. A customer at the McDonald's drive-thru window fired a gun in an effort to stop the attack on Harris, followed Muhammad as she fled to a vehicle and held her at gunpoint until police arrived.

The customer was legally allowed to carry a concealed weapon.

“This is an absolutely senseless and heartbreaking tragedy,” Prosecutor Peter Lucido said. “A life was taken in an act of unimaginable violence. The victim leaves behind six children, six young lives that will now grow up without a parent.”

Muhammad, of Eastpointe, was being held in the Macomb County Jail on a $25 million bond. A not guilty plea was entered by a judge at Friday's arraignment, according to court records.

“There are a lot of things that need to come to light regarding this matter,” Muhammad's arraignment attorney Matthew Licata told The Associated Press.

Muhammad has a probable cause conference on July 23 and a preliminary examination on July 30.