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ST. GEORGE — A man who fled from police in southern Utah, eventually leading to a standoff near the Utah-Arizona border with the man holding an infant at gunpoint, ended with officers shot and killed him on Thursday. Police said the baby was not harmed.
Washington police officers were looking for Oscar Alcantara, 30, who had allegedly brandished a gun last Saturday. Police learned he was at a St. George address on Thursday and went to look for him, according to a joint statement issued Friday by the St. George and Washington police departments.
Officers spotted Alcantara leaving the residence in an SUV and pulled the vehicle over. A woman who was driving got out of the SUV and told police that Alcantara was in the back seat, "had a gun and her infant son was in the vehicle," according to police.
At that point, Alcantara got into the driver's seat and drove off. Because of the threat to the child, police chased after him. Officers from St. George and the city of Washington pursued the man through St. George, Santa Clara, Ivins and onto Old Highway 91 into Mohave County, Arizona, according to the statement.
The SUV stopped near Beaver Dam, Arizona, about 35 miles south of Santa Clara, about 2:30 p.m. Alcantara ran from the vehicle into an open field while holding both the infant and a gun, according to the statement. Police from Utah and Arizona surrounded the man and contacted him by phone.
"The suspect continued to threaten to kill the child and was observed pointing the gun at the child," police said. Despite officers' efforts to peacefully resolve this incident, at least one officer fired a weapon, striking the suspect."
A statement from the Mohave County Sheriff's Office noted that an officer with the St. George Police Department Tactical Team shot Alcantara.
The child "appeared to be unharmed" and was taken to a local fire station for evaluation, according to the statement.
Alcantara has a lengthy criminal history in Utah, according to court records. In 2016 he was convicted of robbery in one case and kidnapping in another and was ordered to serve a term of one to 15 years at the Utah State Prison for each crime, court records state. Those sentences were ordered to run consecutively.
