On April 20, Peter Lucido, the Macomb County Prosecutor, apprehended Noor Noel Kestou at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York as he attempted to flee the country for Hong Kong on a one-way ticket. Kestou, a resident of Commerce Township and owner of a suburban Detroit business that experienced a fatal fire and explosion on March 4, was charged with involuntary manslaughter during his arraignment on Thursday.
The incident took place in a Clinton Township building where Goo, a distributor for the vaping industry, was located. The building housed over 100,000 vape pens, and authorities revealed that a shipment of butane canisters had been delivered to the site shortly before the explosion. The blast ejected canisters up to 2 miles, and more than half of the stock remained in the building when the fire ignited. Turner Lee Salter, 19, was fatally impacted by a nitrous oxide canister that travelled a quarter of a mile due to the explosion.
Officials indicated that Kestou attempted to flee the country for Hong Kong after being considered a suspect from the start due to his ownership of Goo. The business had obtained an occupancy permit in September 2022 to operate as a retail location selling vape-related merchandise.
Kestou was released after paying a $500,000 bond and is now required to wear a GPS tracker as a condition of his release. A probable cause hearing is set for May 7 at Clinton Township District Court. James Thomas, Kestou’s attorney, declined to comment on the case, leaving many unanswered questions regarding the tragic incident and its aftermath.
