Two children inside the house grew worried and a relative later found the couple, police said.
PHOENIX, AZ — A woman fatally shot her husband and then turned the gun on herself inside a north Phoenix home Sunday evening, authorities said. Officers were called just after 5 p.m. Jan. 18 to a neighborhood near 29th Avenue and Bell Road and found both adults dead.
Police identified the couple Monday as Sam Ertebati and Celestina Ertebati. Investigators said the shooting happened inside the couple’s bedroom while their children were also in the house. The case remains a suspected murder-suicide, with detectives still working to determine what led up to it. The Maricopa County Medical Examiner will complete autopsies to confirm causes of death. No one else was hurt. The department said the preliminary timeline came from 911 calls and interviews conducted after relatives entered the home at the request of the children.
Officers arrived at about 5:14 p.m. after a caller reported two adults unresponsive with a gun nearby. Police said the couple’s two sons grew concerned when their parents had not woken up and contacted a family member. That relative went to the home, found the bedroom door closed and discovered the bodies. Detectives at the scene recovered a firearm and processed the room for shell casings and other evidence. “Based on what we found inside the room and early statements, we believe the wife shot her husband and then herself,” a Phoenix Police spokesperson said.
Authorities released the names after notifying next of kin and confirmed the pair were married and living together at the address. Court documents reviewed by reporters show the couple had filed competing orders of protection during a divorce case that began in October 2023. In one petition, Sam wrote that his wife had become “hostile” and “out of control” in recent months and alleged several assaults at the home. Days later, Celestina filed her own petition, accusing her husband of drinking and verbal abuse around the children and claiming he accessed her iCloud account without permission. The orders were later dismissed, and the divorce case did not proceed to final judgment, according to the records. Police said they are still gathering prior reports and any calls for service linked to the address.
The house sits just south of Bell Road in a cluster of single-story homes with walled yards, a few blocks from 29th Avenue. Neighbors told reporters officers sealed the street with patrol cars and crime-scene tape for hours Sunday night while technicians photographed the bedroom and collected evidence. Squad cars lingered into Monday as next-of-kin notifications continued. By afternoon, a small line of vehicles brought relatives to the property, and a tow truck removed one car from the driveway. People who live nearby said they did not hear gunfire and only learned what happened after seeing police lights and a swarm of investigators outside.
Domestic-related shootings have drawn renewed attention across the Phoenix area this week, with several separate incidents investigated since Friday. Police said the north Phoenix case is being worked by the department’s homicide unit with support from victim services staff. Detectives are also reviewing digital records, including text messages and email accounts mentioned in the earlier protection-order filings, to determine whether threats or intimidation preceded the shooting. Officials said no other suspects are being sought. The department has not released information about who owned the firearm or how it was stored in the home.
Investigators will seek ballistic and fingerprint results from items recovered in the bedroom and may submit the gun for a trace to learn its retail sale history. The homicide unit will compile its findings into a final report for internal review. If analysts identify prior calls to the address, those reports will be attached to the case file. The Medical Examiner’s office is expected to issue autopsy determinations and toxicology testing in the coming weeks. Police said any additional public updates would be posted after next-of-kin notifications and lab results are complete. No criminal charges are expected because the suspected shooter is deceased, but the department will close the case only after lab and records checks are finished.
By late Monday, yellow tape had been removed and the block reopened to traffic. A woman who identified herself as a family friend left flowers near the mailbox and declined further comment. A neighbor across the street said he saw officers bring the children to a relative’s car while detectives worked the scene. “It was quiet and then suddenly the whole road was flashing lights,” he said. Another resident described a heavy police presence through the evening as lab technicians came and went. Relatives arriving at the house asked media for privacy as they stepped past chalk markings on the driveway and into the front room.
As of Wednesday morning, detectives said the investigation remains active and centered on what occurred inside the bedroom and in the days before the shooting. The next public milestone is expected when the Medical Examiner releases autopsy findings and when police provide a closing summary of evidence collected at the scene.
Author note: Last updated January 21, 2026.