Benjamin E. McMichael was a 67-year-old Black man who lived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and ran his own construction company. He shared his home in the city’s Logan neighborhood with his 22-year-old grandson, Czar McMichael. In 2019, his grandson had graduated from a workforce development program and was working for the family business.
On Thursday, April 28, 2022, Benjamin went to his grandson’s third-floor bedroom inside their home on the 4600 block of North Broad Street. According to police, Benjamin was conducting a "routine inspection" and became upset about the condition of the room. When he grabbed his grandson's arm, Czar McMichael spun around and shot him multiple times, killing him.
Two days later, on the afternoon of Saturday, April 30, family and friends grew concerned because they had not heard from Benjamin. A 45-year-old man named Anthony Ham, who was identified by police as Czar's step-uncle, went to the house with another relative to check on him.
Ham gained entry through a window and then opened the door for his companion. While searching the home, Ham encountered Czar McMichael on a staircase leading to the third floor.
The two men got into a verbal altercation. Police said Czar first tried to shoot Ham with a handgun that jammed. He then retrieved a second weapon, a .22-caliber handgun believed to be the same one used to kill his grandfather, and shot Ham multiple times. As Czar fled the residence on foot, the witness who had accompanied Ham called 911. Responding officers found Ham’s body on the second floor and Benjamin McMichael’s body on the third floor. Medics pronounced both men dead at the scene at 4:56 p.m.
Police apprehended Czar McMichael a short distance away on the 4500 block of North 13th Street and identified him as the shooter. He was arrested and charged with murder and other related offenses for the deaths of both his grandfather and Anthony Ham. Investigators noted that the suspect had no prior criminal record and may have been struggling with mental health issues. As of May 2022, Czar McMichael had been denied bail and remained in custody.
