On the evening of January 18, 2026, a welfare check call brought Phoenix Police Department officers to a residence in the 2900 block of West Bell Road in north Phoenix, an area close to Interstate 17.
The call, placed just before 5:15 p.m., reported unknown trouble at the home, with the caller describing a man and a woman found unresponsive inside, a gun nearby. This initial report stemmed from a family member’s concern after being contacted by the couple’s two children, who had grown worried when their parents failed to wake up earlier that day.
Officers entered the single-family home and located the bodies of 42-year-old Sam Ertebati and his 42-year-old wife, Celestina Ertebati, inside the bedroom. Both had sustained fatal gunshot wounds, and paramedics pronounced them dead at the scene. The presence of a firearm in close proximity immediately pointed investigators toward a domestic incident rather than an external threat, allowing police to quickly assure the public that no suspects were outstanding and no broader danger existed.
Further details emerged as detectives interviewed family members and reviewed the scene. The couple’s children, who were home during the incident, had not witnessed the shooting itself and remained physically unharmed.
Their decision to reach out to a relative when their parents remained unresponsive proved pivotal in alerting authorities promptly. Phoenix Police victim services units were dispatched to provide immediate counseling and support resources to the children, ensuring their emotional well-being and placement in a safe environment amid the trauma.
Through the preliminary investigation, detectives pieced together evidence indicating that Celestina Ertebati fatally shot her husband, Sam, before turning the weapon on herself in an apparent murder-suicide. The bedroom setting suggested the event unfolded privately, away from the children’s direct view. While the exact timeline within the home remains part of the ongoing probe, no signs of forced entry or struggle involving outsiders were reported, reinforcing the isolated nature of the tragedy.
The north Phoenix neighborhood, typically a quiet residential area near major roadways, grappled with the shock of the event. Neighbors described the family as unassuming, with little prior indication of distress that might have foreshadowed such an outcome. Phoenix Police continue to investigate potential contributing factors, including any history of domestic issues, though no motive has been publicly disclosed at this early stage.
This heartbreaking loss of Sam and Celestina Ertebati, a married couple sharing a home and raising children together, underscores the hidden struggles that can culminate in irreversible violence. Community resources for grief and crisis intervention have been highlighted in the aftermath, as authorities and support networks rally around the surviving young family members during this devastating time.