Background: The White Castle located on Woodward Ave in Ferndale, Michigan (Google Maps). Inset: Terrell Simms (Oakland County Sheriff”s Office).
A Michigan man will spend decades behind bars for the murder of a DoorDash driver delivering White Castle during an apparent road rage shooting.
Terrell Simms, 39, was sentenced this week to between 37 1/2 and 80 years in prison in the death of 26-year-old Mamadou Diallo, according to Detroit-based NBC affiliate WDIV. Simms was convicted in October of charges including second-degree murder, carrying a concealed weapon, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
It was the early morning of March 9, 2025, when Diallo, working as a DoorDash driver, picked up an order from the White Castle located on Woodward Avenue in Ferndale, a Detroit suburb. He drove away from the restaurant, merged northbound onto Woodward Avenue, and then entered a road that would take him south.
As Diallo merged onto southbound Woodward Avenue, “a GMC truck speeding recklessly nearly collided with his vehicle before abruptly switching lanes,” the Ferndale Police Department said. As he approached Eight Mile Road, “the driver of the truck slowed down, waiting for Diallo to catch up.”
Authorities believe that Simms then fired six shots at Diallo’s Ford Escape.
At about 1:45 a.m., police received a call about shots being fired at the intersection. Minutes later, “a second caller reported an individual lying outside a Ford Escape on the southbound Woodward Avenue bridge over 8 Mile.” Officers responded to find Diallo with a gunshot wound to his torso.
He was brought to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Simms was identified as a suspect, and he was arrested about a month later. It is not clear whether Simms was the one driving the GMC truck, though police did mention that three suspects were initially arrested, with two of them being released.
“This was a senseless act of violence that took the life of an innocent man who was simply working to make ends meet,” said Ferndale Police Chief Dennis Emmi when announcing Simms’ arrest. “We extend our deepest condolences to Mr. Diallo’s family.”
According to WDIV, the fatal shooting occurred one day before Diallo’s 27th birthday. It was also reportedly Ferndale’s first murder since 2016.
Ferndale is located just north of Detroit.
