Man shoots his 6-month-old baby multiple times at home near Phoenix, but child expected to survive

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — A man shot his 6-month-old baby multiple times Friday at a home northwest of Phoenix after taking the infant and its mother captive, but the mother escaped with minor injuries and the child was expected to survive, authorities said.

They said the status of the suspect remained unknown after a fire broke out during a standoff with police.

Officers went to the home in the city of Surprise in response to an emergency call around 11:30 a.m. from a woman who said she and her baby had been held captive there since 3 a.m. by the child’s father, police said.

The woman managed to escape and borrowed a cellphone from a nearby construction crew, Sgt. Rick Hernandez said during a news conference Friday. He said she told the dispatcher the infant was still inside the home and could be in danger.

Officers heard gunfire from inside the house as they arrived, Hernandez said. They entered and found the baby with multiple gunshot wounds but did not see the father. They retrieved the child and retreated.

“The infant victim was airlifted to a nearby hospital in serious condition, but injuries are believed to be non-life threatening,” Surprise police said in a statement Friday night. “The female victim was treated at the scene for minor injuries and was transported to the hospital to be with the child.”

SWAT officers surrounded the home in the afternoon, and Hernandez said investigators believed the man was still there.

A fire broke out during the standoff with police, police said in their statement Friday night. The suspect was believed to still be in the home but his status was unknown, they said.

Aerial videos and photos from the afternoon showed a thick plume of smoke rising from the severely damaged house.

Hernandez said the man did not live at the home with the woman and the baby.

“The condition of the suspect will be unknown until it is safe for investigators to enter the residence,” police said in the statement Friday night.