Mother apparently kills 5-year-old son and herself in apparent murder-suicide at Arizona hospital
Banner Cardon Children's Hospital, Mesa, Arizona
PHOENIX, AZ. (KTVU) --
Police in suburban Phoenix, Arizona say it appears early Saturday morning, that a mother killed her 5-year-old son, and then herself, in an murder-suicide.
It happened at the Banner Cardon Children's Medical Center in Mesa, Arizona. Mesa is just east of Phoenix.
Nurses found the woman and her child dead, inside the boy's room at 2 a.m. Saturday local time.
Mesa police spokesman, Det. Steve Berry says the mother died from a gunshot wound. Berry declined to say how the boy died.
The child had been a patient at the hospital for the past week. Nurses conduct routine bed checks on patients every two hours, said police.
A check of the boy and his mother was normal at midnight, but a nurse found the dead bodies at 2 a.m., according to authorities.
Investiagatorrs are refusing to identify the woman or her son, except to say that the family was from Phoenix, and that the family's situation was under investigation by the Arizona Department of Child Safety.
Det. Berry said that DCS had last contacted the family just two days ago.
Investigators are now contacting the relatives of the woman and the boy. No other person or family member was hurt in this incident.
Banner Cardon Children's Hospital issued this statement, "The safety of our patients, associates and visitors is paramount to us and is our top priority at this time. At no time were others impacted by this incident and we remain vigil in the safety of all we’re treating and seeing at Cardon Children’s Medical Center.
Banner Health does have a policy in place that prohibits firearms and weapons at all of our hospitals, health centers, and clinics that’s posted at our entry ways.
Our thoughts are with the family and their loss at this time. We’re directing all questions to the Mesa Police Department for any further comment related to this case."