Body cam shows Surprise Police go into a barricaded home to rescue a baby who'd been shot
By: Police have rescued a 6-month-old baby boy who was shot multiple times while held hostage alongside a woman in Arizona.
The Surprise Police Department was alerted to a woman and infant who were being held hostage in the area of 168th Avenue and Jenan Drive on Friday, May 17, according to a May 18 statement on the police department's Facebook page.
An earlier statement from authorities said the woman had been held hostage inside her residence "by the father of her child" since 3 a.m. local time after he broke into her home.
The woman was eventually able to get away from the suspect and alerted a nearby construction crew, who called the police. "Officers learned the infant was still inside the home with the suspect," the statement read.
"When officers arrived at the residence, they heard multiple rounds of gunfire from inside. A Surprise Police officer fired one round in response toward the residence where the suspect was located, and officers quickly worked to force entry and rescue the infant who sustained multiple gunshot wounds," the statement continued.
The 6-month-old was airlifted to a nearby hospital "in serious condition." According to the second statement from police, the baby is "in critical but stable condition at a local hospital.” "The female victim was treated at the scene for minor injuries and was transported to the hospital to be with her child," the statement added.
The suspect involved was later identified as Todd Christopher Marchetti. According to the statement, the 51-year-old was found dead in the home, which caught fire during the standoff, after refusing to surrender to police.
“Marchetti continually refused to come out of the home and peacefully surrender to police. After an hours-long standoff, the home caught fire,” authorities said, per the statement. “The cause of the fire remains under investigation.”
“Once it was safe for investigators to enter the residence, they discovered the remains of Marchetti with what appears to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head,” the statement added. “The cause of death is still pending the results of the medical examiner's full report.”