SHOW LOW, Ariz. — An Arizona grand jury has indicted a man in the fatal shooting of his 1-year-old daughter, and prosecutors say he carried out the crime with an AR-style rifle in front of the girl’s mother.
The indictment issued earlier this month charges Adam Joseph Montoya, 27, with two felony counts — second-degree murder and child abuse. Montoya has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The Navajo County Public Defender’s Office, which is representing Montoya, declined comment Monday.
The shooting took place Feb. 3 at a home in Show Low, a small mountainous community about 180 miles (289.68 kilometers) northeast of Phoenix, the Navajo County Attorney’s Office said in a statement.
Emergency responders took the infant to a medical center in Show Low where she was pronounced dead, prosecutors said. Both the Navajo County Attorney’s Office and Show Low police declined to comment further on the case.
Montoya is being held on a $1 million bond.