Grand Blanc man sentenced for 2018 hunter slaying

A Grand Blanc man has been sentenced to serve decades in prison for the death of a hunter in 2018.

A Clinton County jury convicted Thomas Olson, 35, in February for shooting Chong Yang in the head on Nov. 18, 2018 in Rose Lake State Park. He was found guilty of second-degree murder and felony firearm.

On Monday, Judge Shannon Schlegel of the 29th Circuit Court sentenced Olson to serve between 22.5 and 60 years of incarceration, according to a press release from Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel's office.

“While the path to justice can be long, the Bath Township Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the dedicated prosecutors in my office worked tirelessly to secure this arrest, conviction, and now, sentencing,” Nessel said in the release.

“No jury verdict or sentencing could erase the pain felt by loved ones mourning the loss of Mr. Yang, though we hope today marks a significant step toward healing and a renewed assurance of justice.” 

Olson's attorney, Michael Manley, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Yang's wife was alarmed when he didn't return from a day hunting in the Bath Township park, authorities said. Relatives found the 68-year-old's car in the parking lot and footprints leading to his body, where he was lying face down with a gunshot wound to the head.

Police found Olson with witness testimony and a plastic bag with hunting spray recovered near the scene, officials reported.