A father and his one-year-old child are dead following a murder-suicide in Convent, Louisiana State Police said.
The incident Wednesday in St. James Parish began shortly after 2 p.m., when St. James Sheriff's deputies arrived at a home in Paulina, following a request for a deputy.
Someone had requested that officers be at the property while a man retrieved his belongings, a Sheriff's Office spokesperson said.
The man didn't show up to get the items, the sheriff's office said. Close to two hours later, deputies returned to the home after another call.
When deputies arrived the second time, a woman at the home requested a welfare check on the man and their child, who were traveling in a vehicle in an unknown area, said Amanda Pertuis, public information officer with the St. James Parish Sheriff's Office.
Investigators learned that the vehicle was traveling in Ascension Parish, she said.
The Gonzales Police Department and Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office found the vehicle and pursued it into St. James Parish, State Police said in a news release.
Officers found the driver of the vehicle, a 23-year-old man, with a self-inflicted gunshot wound, State Police said. An infant who was in the vehicle was found dead at the scene from a gunshot wound, the agency said.
The father was transported to a hospital, where he later died of his injuries, said State Police, which is the lead investigating agency.
The identities of the man and child have not been released.
The St. James Sheriff's Office is assisting in the investigation.
Anyone with information and/or pictures and video is asked to share the information anonymously with State Police detectives by calling 1-800-434-8007 or going online to lsp.org and clicking the "report suspicious or criminal activity" link.
If you or someone you know is having thoughts of self-harm, call the National Suicide and Crisis hotline at 988.