TX - Elizabeth Barraza, 29, murdered setting up garage sale, Harris Co, Jan 2019 #4

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Ajs1004 said:
I agree. I don’t think this truck is owned or was owned by the killer. I think it was borrowed in such a way that it would be difficult to trace it back to the killer. Possible but you’d have to go down a rabbit hole to figure it out. JMO.
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If the killer borrowed a vehicle to commit this crime, it would have created another potential loose end. What if the person loaning the car saw footage of the crime on the news and came forward? That being said, why would a killer use such a unique vehicle, one that stands out from the crowd? Was their license plate covered? If not, what pro would choose to risk the plate being on video-if not just at the scene but along the routes of entry and escape as well? With all the Ring videos these days? I think that this perp is more lucky than good. A seasoned pro would not have done this at the residence, in full view of the world. A pro would have never allowed a link to exist between the commission of the crime and the vehicle.

Sooner or later, I say that this person/persons luck runs out.
 
PoppyJune said:
With everything we’ve just seen/read about he ID murders and LE asking for tips about the Elantra, etc. it really gives the impression that the man hours are not being put in on this case. It is a shame so much time has passed and justice hasn’t been found for Liz.
IMO, the timing of her murder and the truck circling the area, along with the murderer being in a disguise shows this was planned. I have my own theories about motives, that are most likely shared with some others in this thread, but will keep that to myself at this time.
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I would agree, and I mean no criticism of the detectives working this case. I think that if you dedicated a team to the car, you would hit pay dirt. FBI resources would help immeasurably. You need to know the year and model-that has been determined I am sure. You locate every one of those cars and do a deep drill-down. Many will have GPS trackers imho, so they can be included/excluded based on that. For the ones without trackers, you need to create a spreadsheet and create parameters for inclusion/exclusion. Age/weight/height of vehicle owners and related family members. Known acquaintances as well. Look at time-frame close to murder for vehicle sales/transfers/salvage in case the perp disposed of the vehicle after the crime. Check license plate replacement orders at the DMV for the vehicle in question. Check vehicle theft reports for said vehicle in case the perp was trying to create an alibi for the vehicle not being in their possession at the time of the murder. Sort this data base by circumference rings beginning near the crime and extending outward-the farther from the crime scene, the less-likely the vehicle was used, theoretically. Check all patrol records within a week of the crime for driving citations issued to this vehicle make/model in and around the immediate area. Check all gas station/bank/ATM video footage for the perp-they had to get gas, food, water at some point unless they were somewhat local. This would involve a geographical radius equal to one car tank of gas in all directions.

It sounds like a lot of work because it is-but I know that a true data geek could handle this. If the perp made one mistake, the car was it.
 
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Let me talk about the garage sale. I’m not that familiar with garage sales and have only done one in my entire life many years ago. In my area and from my understanding mostly what people shop for are children clothes. Looking at the garage sale items Liz was trying to sale gave me thought that yes it seemed sort of last minute planning or perhaps I’m missing something entirely. There really wasn’t much items of interest, was there? However, as they say, "one person’s junk is another person’s treasure."

The garage sale was supposedly for two days, Friday and Saturday, as the Barrazas were leaving on Sunday for the Orlando trip.
So I get that a treadmill would be up for sale. Many times people buy workout equipment and never use them. The stormtrooper helmet would have provided some cash but I don’t see there being any other item of worth, several knick knack items.

So why was it so important to have a garage sale that day?
Whose idea was it to have a garage sale that day?
Wasn’t the Orlando trip planned in advance which would have given the Barraza’s plenty of time to save extra money to spend on anniversary trip?
Was it the norm to plan for trips ahead so not to have any money worries? Did the garage sale come into play because all of a sudden a paycheck bounced and funds were lacking?
Was it the norm to save and keep tight financial records? If so, why the garage sale that particular day? Why the garage sale that day?

Additionally, oh how the shooter was able to avoid the Barraza Nest camera. So interesting…such talent (sarcasm).
MOO
 
arielilane said:
Let me talk about the garage sale. I’m not that familiar with garage sales and have only done one in my entire life many years ago. In my area and from my understanding mostly what people shop for are children clothes. Looking at the garage sale items Liz was trying to sale gave me thought that yes it seemed sort of last minute planning or perhaps I’m missing something entirely. There really wasn’t much items of interest, was there? However, as they say, "one person’s junk is another person’s treasure."

The garage sale was supposedly for two days, Friday and Saturday, as the Barrazas were leaving on Sunday for the Orlando trip.
So I get that a treadmill would be up for sale. Many times people buy workout equipment and never use them. The stormtrooper helmet would have provided some cash but I don’t see there being any other item of worth, several knick knack items.

So why was it so important to have a garage sale that day?
Whose idea was it to have a garage sale that day?
Wasn’t the Orlando trip planned in advance which would have given the Barraza’s plenty of time to save extra money to spend on anniversary trip?
Was it the norm to plan for trips ahead so not to have any money worries? Did the garage sale come into play because all of a sudden a paycheck bounced and funds were lacking?
Was it the norm to save and keep tight financial records? If so, why the garage sale that particular day? Why the garage sale that day?

Additionally, oh how the shooter was able to avoid the Barraza Nest camera. So interesting…such talent (sarcasm).
MOO
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Thank you for the post. Let's also think about MOST people who have near-approaching vacations. I like your highlighting the triviality of the sale-why would someone invest the time and effort to raise extra cash on THAT weekend? Did she take the day off from work, forgoing her wages to make petty cash at a yard sale Friday? Was she pressured to have the sale? Why didn't her husband help her to set up? Why did he leave early? Why did the perp leave the school parking lot to relocate closer to the residence at the same time that the husband left early for work? I know that if I had a vacation coming up that soon I would want nothing to do with a garage sale! Trips require a lot of planning and preparation, and most people would view having a yard sale as a significantly poor use of their precious pre-departure time. Also suspect to me is, Who takes a vacation when they are strapped for cash?

As for the nest camera, the assailant had a disguise on-not sure much could be gleaned from even a close-up shot. As to their sex, I am nearly sure that this is a male based on their posture and their awkward effort to look normal in that disguise. Women walk differently than men, and this person looks like a man wearing drag for the first time.
 
santacruztodd said:
Thank you for the post. Let's also think about MOST people who have near-approaching vacations. I like your highlighting the triviality of the sale-why would someone invest the time and effort to raise extra cash on THAT weekend? Did she take the day off from work, forgoing her wages to make petty cash at a yard sale Friday? Was she pressured to have the sale? Why didn't her husband help her to set up? Why did he leave early? Why did the perp leave the school parking lot to relocate closer to the residence at the same time that the husband left early for work? I know that if I had a vacation coming up that soon I would want nothing to do with a garage sale! Trips require a lot of planning and preparation, and most people would view having a yard sale as a significantly poor use of their precious pre-departure time. Also suspect to me is, Who takes a vacation when they are strapped for cash?

As for the nest camera, the assailant had a disguise on-not sure much could be gleaned from even a close-up shot. As to their sex, I am nearly sure that this is a male based on their posture and their awkward effort to look normal in that disguise. Women walk differently than men, and this person looks like a man wearing drag for the first time.
Click to expand...

And who was the passenger in the killer's truck? Why would someone else ride along for the murder?
 
arielilane said:
Let me talk about the garage sale. I’m not that familiar with garage sales and have only done one in my entire life many years ago. In my area and from my understanding mostly what people shop for are children clothes. Looking at the garage sale items Liz was trying to sale gave me thought that yes it seemed sort of last minute planning or perhaps I’m missing something entirely. There really wasn’t much items of interest, was there? However, as they say, "one person’s junk is another person’s treasure."

The garage sale was supposedly for two days, Friday and Saturday, as the Barrazas were leaving on Sunday for the Orlando trip.
So I get that a treadmill would be up for sale. Many times people buy workout equipment and never use them. The stormtrooper helmet would have provided some cash but I don’t see there being any other item of worth, several knick knack items.

So why was it so important to have a garage sale that day?
Whose idea was it to have a garage sale that day?
Wasn’t the Orlando trip planned in advance which would have given the Barraza’s plenty of time to save extra money to spend on anniversary trip?
Was it the norm to plan for trips ahead so not to have any money worries? Did the garage sale come into play because all of a sudden a paycheck bounced and funds were lacking?
Was it the norm to save and keep tight financial records? If so, why the garage sale that particular day? Why the garage sale that day?

Additionally, oh how the shooter was able to avoid the Barraza Nest camera. So interesting…such talent (sarcasm).
MOO
Click to expand...

I’m a planner by nature so to me the very thought of a last minute garage sale right before a trip is crazy. If I have a trip planned, I have all of the financial details worked out before purchasing the tickets.

If I am planning a garage sale, I plan it weeks in advance to make sure it’s not conflicting with other local events. I also find that bigger ticket items sell better on Facebook marketplace and posting the bigger stuff there while simultaneously having a garage sale brings more traffic.

The entire thing has always left me puzzled.
 
santacruztodd said:
Thank you for the post. Let's also think about MOST people who have near-approaching vacations. I like your highlighting the triviality of the sale-why would someone invest the time and effort to raise extra cash on THAT weekend? Did she take the day off from work, forgoing her wages to make petty cash at a yard sale Friday? Was she pressured to have the sale? Why didn't her husband help her to set up? Why did he leave early? Why did the perp leave the school parking lot to relocate closer to the residence at the same time that the husband left early for work? I know that if I had a vacation coming up that soon I would want nothing to do with a garage sale! Trips require a lot of planning and preparation, and most people would view having a yard sale as a significantly poor use of their precious pre-departure time. Also suspect to me is, Who takes a vacation when they are strapped for cash?

As for the nest camera, the assailant had a disguise on-not sure much could be gleaned from even a close-up shot. As to their sex, I am nearly sure that this is a male based on their posture and their awkward effort to look normal in that disguise. Women walk differently than men, and this person looks like a man wearing drag for the first time.
Click to expand...
She did take the day off from work and the sale was spontaneous. <modsnip - no link> If you watched the Paula zahn special, S said that some of his paychecks had been bouncing so they could probably use the extra money of this sale.
 
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iamnotagolem said:
I’m a planner by nature so to me the very thought of a last minute garage sale right before a trip is crazy. If I have a trip planned, I have all of the financial details worked out before purchasing the tickets.

If I am planning a garage sale, I plan it weeks in advance to make sure it’s not conflicting with other local events. I also find that bigger ticket items sell better on Facebook marketplace and posting the bigger stuff there while simultaneously having a garage sale brings more traffic.

The entire thing has always left me puzzled.
Click to expand...
I am like you, planning out all details well in advance. However, I know plenty of people who would not think twice about a spontaneous yard sale right before a trip. If it's true the husband's checks had been bouncing, I could imagine someone having a last minute yard sale in hopes of still being able to buy souvenirs, have nice meals on their trip. "Honey, my check bounced again. I'm not sure we should take this trip." "No worries, I'll sell a few things so we can still have a nice time." The only reason I'm thinking twice about it is because of what happened to Elizabeth.
 
dulcinea said:
I am like you, planning out all details well in advance. However, I know plenty of people who would not think twice about a spontaneous yard sale right before a trip. If it's true the husband's checks had been bouncing, I could imagine someone having a last minute yard sale in hopes of still being able to buy souvenirs, have nice meals on their trip. "Honey, my check bounced again. I'm not sure we should take this trip." "No worries, I'll sell a few things so we can still have a nice time." The only reason I'm thinking twice about it is because of what happened to Elizabeth.
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Why not simply put trip-related expenses on the credit card and re-pay it when you get back?
 
santacruztodd said:
Why not simply put trip-related expenses on the credit card and re-pay it when you get back?
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Because not everyone has a credit card. Or good credit. Or a decent credit limit. Or maybe their cards are maxed out? Or maybe she wants to limit the extra spending money and just bringing cash from the sale with her would prevent unnecessary spending. There’s plenty of reasons why people don’t want to use a credit card.
 
Betty P said:
In a video linked below, the guy who has done very detailed analysis of the video of the truck driving around, you can see someone sitting in the passenger seat in one of the photos. Either this one or the second one he did.

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Thank you.
I watched it twice up to the 10 min mark, and I didn't see anyone in the passenger seat.
Doesn't mean that there's no one there, I just didn't see anybody.

ETA: went back and watched some more, and at the 32. plus min mark, I see where Arron has circled the front seat passenger.
 
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This is very much like the Idaho case. The break that led to capturing BK in Idaho was capturing the car on camera and WSU then identifying the car registered on campus. That led to the identity of the registrant, the plate numbers, the video of the car coming and going from campus that night at the right times, the phone number for LE to track, and the father's DNA sample in PA. If campus safety had not bothered to run a check of vehicles on their campus, we would have no idea who BK was. It takes one person going a little bit out of the way or above and beyond to break these cases.

In EB's case we also have a car but we are missing that crucial link to a person so we can begin connecting the dots. I am hoping that it's not for a lack of the resources to scrutinize similar cars in a 10-20 mile radius.
 
Curiousobserver said:
This is very much like the Idaho case. The break that led to capturing BK in Idaho was capturing the car on camera and WSU then identifying the car registered on campus. That led to the identity of the registrant, the plate numbers, the video of the car coming and going from campus that night at the right times, the phone number for LE to track, and the father's DNA sample in PA. If campus safety had not bothered to run a check of vehicles on their campus, we would have no idea who BK was. It takes one person going a little bit out of the way or above and beyond to break these cases.

In EB's case we also have a car but we are missing that crucial link to a person so we can begin connecting the dots. I am hoping that it's not for a lack of the resources to scrutinize similar cars in a 10-20 mile radius.
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Or in a 100-200 mile radius
 
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