An 11-year-old boy has died from injuries from gunshots by his captor on May 1 in Little Rock, Arkansas. The boy had been held hostage by Brent Martin, 32, who was also killed in a shootout with the police.
Martin was the stepfather of the deceased boy, Jordan Roberts. Little Rock police chief Keith Humphrey confirmed Roberts’ death at a press briefing over the weekend.
“It’s with great sadness that we announce that our victim, 11-year-old Jordan Roberts, passed away from his injuries suffered at the hands of our suspect. So, I want to ask that we keep Jordan’s family in our thoughts and prayers,” Humphrey said.
Reports say, the boy’s mother, Maranda Alrod, had gone to Northwest police substation to report that Martin had taken Roberts hostage. Officers were then sent to Alrod’s home in Karon Court.
Upon their arrival, the officers heard shots from inside the Alrod’s house. The two officers, Officer Scott Dettmer and Lt. Dana Jackson, according to the police report, were confronted by Martin. They shot and killed Martin at the scene.
Police chief Humphrey said the officers acted according to their training. But tried as they did, “those shots …were being fired by the suspect [Martin] and … killed Jordan Roberts.”
“I’m telling you right now our officers are hurting. They tried everything they could do to save that young child, and that’s something that they will remember the rest of their lives,” Humphrey added.
“With everything going on, their main focus was to save the life of this child. This was an imminent situation, and it happened only in a matter of seconds. They never thought about their safety,” the chief continued.
Alrod, Martin and Roberts had moved into their house in the last few months. Neighbors said although they did not know much about the grownups, they had seen Roberts running around in the yard.
Initial suspicions are that Alrod and Martin were romantically involved although police say they are looking at the nature of that relationship.
