Mother identifies son killed during hostage situation in south Las Vegas

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect the correct spelling of the child’s name.

LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — A suspect and a child are dead Tuesday morning after a hostage situation turned deadly in the south valley, according to police.

Around 1:20 a.m., Las Vegas Metro Police officers responded to reports of a man battering a woman and attempting to remove a child from an apartment complex in the 8400 block of South Maryland Parkway, near Wigwam Avenue.

The child’s mother told FOX5’s Victoria Saha her son’s name is Kentre Baker.

As officers arrived, they made contact with the woman involved, who said the suspect was armed with a handgun and had already fired it in the parking lot of the complex.

Sources identified the suspect’s car, which is still at the scene, to FOX5. They add that the suspect was attempting to place the child inside as police arrived.

Captain Wiggins stated during a briefing that the suspect entered a residence and took the child hostage, prompting calls for additional law enforcement to the scene.

The suspect then exited the residence again with the gun pointed at the child and began approaching police, refusing to comply with orders to drop his weapon.

LVMPD said officers then fired at the suspect, who also fired his weapon and struck the child.

Watch LVMPD Captain Ryan Wiggins’ full briefing here:

Medical crews provided immediate aid to the child, and transported them to a nearby hospital, where they later died. The suspect also died at the scene.

On Thursday, LVMPD identified the officers involved with the shooting as 39-year-old Jonathan Lo and 26-year-old Damon O’Donnell. Both were assigned to the Community Safety Division in the Enterprise Area Command at the time of the shooting.

Officer Lo has been employed with LVMPD since 2019, while Officer O’Donnell has been employed since 2024. Both officers have been placed on paid administrative leave while the investigation is ongoing.

This marks the third officer-involved shooting in LVMPD’s jurisdiction for 2026.

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