DETROIT — Three 18-year-old men believed to be involved in an auto theft ring have been charged four months later fatal shooting of suburban sheriff’s deputy The one who tracked a stolen SUV to Detroit.

Authorities say the man who shot Oakland County sheriff’s Deputy Bradley J. Reckling on June 22 has been charged with murder of a police officer and criminal enterprise.

The other two are also accused of attempting to commit a crime and being an accomplice to a crime. All three men face charges including receiving and concealing stolen property, carrying a concealed weapon and auto theft, Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy told reporters Wednesday.

They were expected to appear in court on Thursday.

Reckling, a member of the auto theft task force, was on duty and in an unmarked vehicle when he pursued a Chevy Equinox reported stolen from a water park north of Detroit on June 22. The man, who was shot in the head, chest and torso, later died in the hospital where he was taken.

Three people were detained after the attack.

“This started with the death of a peace officer, but it ended up being another initiative,” Worthy said. “It was a ring. “This was something that affected many cities and three counties.”

The ring is believed to operate from November 2023 until June. Investigators from multiple agencies and offices worked on the case for more than four months, Worthy said.

“We worked to get this right,” he said.

Reckling was a nine-year veteran of the sheriff’s office, was a married father of three and had a fourth child on the way when he was killed, Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard said in June.

“When you lose someone in the line of duty, it’s a gut punch,” Bouchard said Wednesday. “There can be no healing from a loss like this, but you learn to process it.”