New details on domestic violence situation of mother, suspect in Surprise standoff

PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Arizona’s Family is learning more about the victims in the hostage, baby shot, officer-involved shooting, standoff, and fire situation in Surprise from the mother’s best friend.

Linda Ogle says her friend Allie was doing all she could to get out of a domestic violence situation, and no one ever expected it to escalate to this extreme.

In one day, Allie lost her home and all of her belongings, and she nearly lost her 6-month-old baby, Jaxson.

“Evil. I don’t have any other explanation besides he’s evil,” said Ogle.

Ogle calls it a scene out of a horror movie. Allie and Jaxson are living an unimaginable nightmare after police say 51-year-old Todd Marchetti caused a series of tragic events.

“There’s a lot of fear. She was really afraid of him,” said Ogle.

Marchetti is Jaxson’s father and Allie’s boyfriend of a year and a half. Detectives say Marchetti broke into a home in Surprise around 3 a.m. Friday and held Allie and Jaxson hostage.

Ogle says Allie recently moved in there with her parents to try to get away from Marchetti’s abuse, but he was stalking her.

“He used an ax to get through one of the windows,” said Ogle. “He brought duct tape and ropes and different forms of pliers and a couple different butcher knives.”

The plan was to torture Allie for days while her parents were away for the weekend, according to Ogle, and in the process, she says Marchetti shot the family dog. She says they all went to the vet, but Allie couldn’t escape then.

Ogle says Allie convinced him to let her talk to a construction worker after they got back to ask for help fixing the window he broke. That crew called 911, and then police say Marchetti shot his son.

“She saved both of their lives and I’ve told her that multiple times. She said ‘Oh, well I should have just taken Jaxson out of the house with me’ and I said if you would have picked that baby up and tried to walk out of that door with him he would have opened fire on both of you and neither of you would be here right now,” said Ogle.

Ogle says it’s a miracle Jaxson is alive. She says he’s had two surgeries so far, and doctors expect him to pull through.

“He heard Allie’s voice yesterday and opened his eyes. He wiggles his toes. He grabs my finger,” said Ogle. She’s been by their side in the hospital ever since this happened.

Police say after Jaxson was rescued by tactical teams and taken to the hospital, Marchetti refused to come out, and there was a standoff for hours.

Then, a fire started and destroyed the home. Ogle says Allie’s childhood home burned down, too. “He wanted to make her relive her trauma and that’s exactly what he did,” she said.

On Saturday, investigators say they found Marchetti’s remains in the rubble. They believe he died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

“There’s a huge part of her that wishes they could have had the family that she wanted to have,” said Ogle.

A GoFundMe has been set up to help them rebuild their lives and recover during this time. If you would like to donate, click/tap here.

There are resources available for domestic violence survivors. For more information, click/tap here.

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