This story was updated on Monday at 5 p.m.
Shawnee Police say an individual has been taken into custody in connection to a house fire early Sunday morning that resulted in the death of an infant.
In a brief statement issued Monday, Shawnee Police Maj. Jim Baker did not identify the individual taken into custody nor say anything about what charges, if any, the person faced.
The infant has also not been publicly identified.
The original story continues below:
Shawnee Fire officials confirm an infant died in a house fire early Sunday morning near 69th Street and Larsen Lane.
Numerous 911 calls from neighbors alerted police and firefighters about 12:50 Sunday morning.
Shawnee, Overland Park and Consolidated Fire District No. 2 firefighters were called to the house at 10502 West 69th Terrace.
Recorded radio traffic from Shawnee police indicates that the house was engulfed in flames when officers arrived.
Officers alerted neighbors to the fire and temporarily evacuated those immediately next door.
Firefighters attacked the fire for about 20 minutes from the outside until they had knocked down enough of the flames that it was safe for them to enter and begin searching for anyone still inside.
As firefighters knocked down the flames, a man on a motorcycle drove into the side yard from 69th Street, dumping the bike on its side and sprinting towards the front door.
The man was restrained by a police officer and fire department safety officer. Recorded radio traffic indicates that police have detained the man.
Shawnee Deputy Fire Chief Corey Sands confirms several people escaped from the house without injury before police or firefighters arrived.
No one was able to get to an infant, who perished in the fire, investigators say.
Sands says the Shawnee Police Department will be assisting with the investigation, as is standard with any fire fatality.
Check back with this report for updates as they become available from police and fire officials.
Mike Frizzell is a freelance crime and fire reporter who runs Operation 100 News.
