Police: Teenage boy found dead after Albuquerque standoff

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A teenager has been found dead inside a southeast Albuquerque home after a fire, and a suspect who was the subject of standoff at the home has been arrested, authorities said Thursday.

The fire ended the overnight SWAT standoff with the suspect, and the body of a 14-year-old boy was later located in the house.

Police said the suspect, whose name wasn’t immediately released, was wanted on a federal felony warrant for robbery and is a person of interest in several violent crimes in the Albuquerque area.

The suspect was tracked to the home and he and the teen hid in the house, according to police who said smoke was seen coming out from windows around 3 a.m. Thursday.

The suspect reportedly exited the home as firefighters extinguished the flames. He was taken into custody and then transported to a local hospital for burn injuries.

Authorities stressed that no officers fired their weapons during the standoff. Those who lived at the home questioned whether gas canisters fired by the SWAT team sparked the blaze, the Albuquerque Journal reported.

Police Chief Harold Medina said the team uses Tri-Chamber canisters when trying to get someone to surrender.

“They’re built in a way that’s supposed to reduce the likelihood of causing a fire. And it’s something we use over and over — in tons of calls,” he said.

Medina said arson investigators were working to determine how the fire started and the dead teenager has yet to be identified.