DePue man denied bail after police gunfire kills boy during hostage standoff

Anthony Daniel Rodriguez, 42, of rural DePue, was denied pre-trial release during his initial court appearance in Bureau County court on Wednesday afternoon following a hostage situation on Sunday, May 10 that ended in the death of a 3-year-old boy.

Rodriguez is charged with three counts of aggravated unlawful restraint, aggravated assault and two counts of domestic battery. He faces up to five years if convicted of aggravated unlawful restraint, the most serious of his counts.

Additional charges are still under review, according to Bureau County State’s Attorney Dan Anderson.

Anderson said, however, that Rodriguez would not be charged with felony murder. At one time, any violent offense resulting in a death made the suspect eligible for a murder charge. That changed in 2021, Anderson said.

More details about the incident were also revealed during Wednesday’s hearing. Prosecutors said a woman called 911 after Rodriguez allegedly threatened her life and the lives of two children.

Before officers’ arrival, prosecutors said Rodriguez had been wrapping parts of the residence in plastic and spraying bleach throughout the home, including on a person. Prosecutors also said Rodriguez had a large butcher knife and threatened the lives of the adults and children present if they left.

According to prosecutors, police established a perimeter around the residence and attempted to get Rodriguez to come out peacefully.

Officers attempted de-escalation techniques while inside the home. When those failed, they broke down the bedroom door, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said Rodriguez then jumped onto a bed with the knife, which 3-year-old Damian Camacho was on. Rodriguez then grabbed Camacho and held him. An officer, who has not been identified, fired three total shots. A non-lethal weapon was deployed first, followed by two shots from a firearm. Both Rodriguez and Camacho were struck.

Camacho was transported to a hospital in Princeton, where he later died from the gunshot wound. Authorities said when officers attempted to provide aid to the child following the shooting, Rodriguez initially refused to let them take the boy for medical treatment.

Public defender Eric May argued Rodriguez should be granted pre-trial release and receive mental health treatment because he appeared to be suffering from paranoia and hallucinations during the incident and “a jail setting would not be beneficial in getting him back as a functioning member of society.”

According to statements made in court by May, Rodriguez allegedly believed he was “trying to protect” the children and that “God had told him to protect the three until the sun rose.”

Anderson argued the alleged mental health concerns were part of the reason Rodriguez should remain in jail rather than out on the streets.

“If mental health issues were the reason he committed these crimes, that only heightens his threat to the public in my opinion,” Anderson said during the hearing.

Judge Geno J. Caffarini agreed with Anderson, saying Rodriguez would pose a threat to the community if released.

Caffarini also pointed to Rodriguez’s criminal history, including an attempted murder conviction in 2003, and refusal to comply with police during the incident, as a reason he could not be trusted to follow the conditions of a pretrial release.

May declined to comment following the hearing.

Rodriguez is scheduled to be arraigned at 1:15 p.m. Friday, May 15, at the Bureau County Courthouse in Princeton.

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Anthony Daniel Rodriguez (right) walks into the Bureau County Courthouse for an appearance on Wednesday, May 13, 2026 in Princeton. Rodriguez, a 42-year-old man has been charged in connection with a shooting near DePue that killed a 3-year-old child during a domestic disturbance Sunday. (Scott Anderson)