Police Rescue Injured Baby in Fiery, Deadly Hostage Standoff

Police in Arizona released body-camera footage that shows the moment officers braved a house fire to rescue a critically wounded 7-month-old baby amid a deadly hostage standoff late last week.

The footage, released Monday by the Surprise Police Department (SPD) and shared online by local station KNXV, shows officers forcing their way into a home to save the infant boy, who police said was shot multiple times on Friday by his father.

“Get the baby, get the baby,” one officer can be heard shouting several times in the video as first responders locate the injured boy.

The nearly two-minute clip shows an officer picking up the baby and rushing out of the house to get the child to a medic waiting outside. The little boy was flown to Phoenix Children’s Hospital where he underwent numerous surgeries, SPD said. The baby is expected to survive and is in “critical but stable condition at a local hospital,” police said in an update on Monday.

During a press conference on Monday, local authorities shared the video of the baby boy’s rescue along with new information about the hostage standoff that left the infant hospitalized and the baby’s father dead. The home where the hours-long standoff occurred also caught fire after the shooting.

Newsweek reached out via email on Monday night to the SPD for comment and an update.

The man, identified as 51-year-old Todd Christopher Marchetti, was the father of the injured baby, SPD spokesperson Rick Hernandez said.

Hernandez said that Marchetti broke into the home where the baby and mother lived around 3 a.m. Friday. Marchetti, who police said did not live in the house, held the mother and little boy hostage for several hours before the woman was able to escape and get help.

SPD officers were called to the home in Surprise, a city roughly 30 miles from Phoenix, around 11:30 a.m., according to a statement from the department.

After officers arrived at the scene, a police standoff ensued and gunfire erupted in the home before the house went up in flames.

“Marchetti continually refused to come out of the home and peacefully surrender to police,” SPD said. “After an hours-long standoff, the home caught fire. 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 cause of death is still pending the results of the medical examiner’s full report.”

SPD did not release the identities of the mother and baby.

A GoFundMe page set up to help the mother and baby boy had raised nearly $130,000 as of Monday night. The page states that the goal is to help the pair cover the cost of housing and living expenses after losing their home and belongings in the blaze. In addition to necessities, the funds will help pay for counseling and support services for the mother and baby.

“Dear friends, family, and kind-hearted strangers, We are reaching out to you with a heartfelt plea to help our dear friend Allie and her six-month-old son, Jaxson, as they navigate through an incredibly challenging time. Allie has recently endured a devastating domestic violence incident that resulted in a fire, leaving her and her family with nothing. Allie and Jaxson have lost their home, belongings, and sense of security. As if this wasn’t enough, baby Jaxson has been hospitalized due to multiple gunshot injuries sustained during the incident. The extent of his hospital stay is uncertain, which means Allie will be unable to work while she stays by his side, adding financial strain to an already dire situation.”

Anyone seeking help should call the National Domestic Violence Hotline, a free and confidential number available 24/7. It can be reached on 1-800-799-7233 or TTY 1-800-787-3224. The hotline also provides information on local resources. For more information, visit thehotline.org.