Arrest made in death of hairstylist

A renowned local hairstylist was killed in a Detroit motel Tuesday night by a man police believe he met on a dating app.

A clerk at JZ Motel and Suites on 8 Mile Road near Gratiot Avenue discovered the body of Bashar Kallabat at 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, about four hours after he checked in, a motel manager who asked not to be named told the Free Press.

Kallabat — a regular at JZ Motel and Suites — checked into the motel at about 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, the manager said. The suspected killer entered Kallabat's room at about 6 p.m., the manager said. A clerk found Kallabat's body after noticing the door to his room wide open later that night.

Detroit police took a 24-year-old man into custody Wednesday morning in connection with the fatal assault.

The suspect was charged in 2017 for unarmed robbery, Detroit Police Chief Craig said during a news conference Wednesday afternoon. The coroner's office believes Kallabat, 56, suffered blunt-force trauma, Craig said.

Kallabat ordered and paid for a ride for the suspect — who police did not name because he is yet to be charged — using a ride-sharing app, Craig said.

Project Greenlight cameras at the motel captured the suspect, who was wearing a security guard jacket, entering the motel, Craig said. Police were then able to turn the video into the ride-sharing app the suspect used that night to confirm his identity within 12 hours.

"Had it not been for our Greenlight at this hotel, this may have been a whodunit," Craig said. "This is another great example of what works."

Craig urged the public to proceed with caution when using dating apps.

"We just want the community to stay safe," he said.

Kallabat and his parents immigrated to the U.S. when he was 3, and he maintained residences in Miami and Michigan, according to his website. He operated out of a salon in Birmingham, BABS Salon and Wellness Spa, and has gained national recognition for his decades of work as a stylist, including in Vogue, Allure and Harper's Magazine.

People inside the Birmingham salon Wednesday declined to comment.

A manager at JZ Motel and Suites said Kallabat was a "well-known guy who didn't do any harm."

JZ Motel and Suites opened following a major makeover project in 2017.

"This is the first time anything like this has ever happened since we opened. We are a clean establishment," the manager said.

Contact Omar Abdel-Baqui: 313-222-2514 or oabdel-baqui@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @omarabdelb

Contact Miriam Marini: 313-222-2728 or mmarini@gannett.com.