TX - Elizabeth Barraza, 29, murdered setting up garage sale, Harris County, Jan 2019 #2

[BaffleMe]

When I watch that video, I see someone who is immersed in the “fantasy” of the act. I imagine that they felt it was a risky, dangerous thing to do. The intrigue of staking out the house. The way they walk, swing their hair (wig?) and shoot EB when she’s on the ground just feels... theatrical. It’s a gut instinct, but to me, it honestly reads as someone pretending they’re in a movie or something. I can see that someone who’s into cosplay might be that type of personality. Not just to kill someone and get it done, but go out and get some elaborate costume like a Bond villain. My opinion and speculation only of course

Interesting point!

 

[BINGOdinoDNA]

As I see things, driving by ‘to see if someone’s dead’ makes no sense at all.

So, what are the possibilities?

1: someone nervous and flustered, who is doing something that doesn’t make sense?

2: someone who turned the wrong way, and circled back by accident.

3: someone who circles back to gloat.

What other possibilities?

I think maybe EB could have been able to identify the person and that's why they risked circling back around. That might explain the need for a disguise (IF there was one). EB was focused on getting things ready, so she may have said, "Good morning!" without even looking away from what she was doing. Upon seeing the person, she takes a step back. We can't tell what was being said or if the gun was being shown, but maybe she recognized the person and they startled her. Maybe she saw someone she knew, but they were in a disguise, which would be confusing. JMO

 

[JnRyan]

A thought about the car potentially being borrowed or stolen... if he/she had borrowed or stolen it with the intention of returning it before the owner noticed, they’d have to be sure the person wouldn’t look for it for quite a long period of time. If they saw the vehicle the night before you’re looking at around 12 hours or so, give or take a few.

That’s quite a gamble.

I wonder if the timing of the shooting had more to do with known availability of the vehicle than any plans Liz & husband might have had. Someone being on holiday perhaps.

Interesting thought. The timing was based on the availability of the vehicle and not the garage sale? Maybe the original plan was to simply ring the doorbell and shoot Elizabeth when she came to the door. This might mean the killer really may have not been one of those who knew about the sale in advance. Didn't Elizabeth and/or her husband put out the sale signs late the night before or very early that morning?

 

[JnRyan]

On the vehicle again. IF this was not the killer's vehicle they might have used their own vehicle in the weeks or days preceding this murder to at least learn the neighborhood and plan their routes. With a murder in January, they could have been one of many driving through looking at homes decorated for Christmas the month before. IOW even though LE has the vehicle coming through the neighborhood a day or two before, they may not really have a clue as to how many times this killer really had been through the area.

 

[TacitusKilgore]

Interesting thought. The timing was based on the availability of the vehicle and not the garage sale? Maybe the original plan was to simply ring the doorbell and shoot Elizabeth when she came to the door. This might mean the killer really may have not been one of those who knew about the sale in advance. Didn't Elizabeth and/or her husband put out the sale signs late the night before or very early that morning?

This is a great point. Just as Elizabeth didn't immediately react to the person, the person got out of the truck and walked over without a ton of thought. If they had planned to shoot her in the house, at the door, a surprise garage sale is likely to thwart the plan-at least a little. The person didn't really miss a beat.

 

[Cryptic]

I would think if you were into Cosplay and intended to kill her, the last thing you would wear is Cosplay gear....

Objectively, what you say is very true.

Humans, however, do not always think objectively regarding any number of things, including criminal actions. Rather, they can think and act subjectively.

As a result, they can do things that would appear to be counter productive and even contradictory to somebody looking at the event from an objective point of view.

In regards to the possibility of a cos player in partial costume, such an individual could be so accustomed to wearing partial costumes of various sorts and being around others who affirm it that they subjectively forget that such a practice is is non existent outside their small sub culture.

Or, though they are not confusing reality and fantasy per se, they have subjectively become the quasi ultra ego character represented by the costume. As a result, the costume is no longer viewed as really a costume. Rather, the gear is well is every day attire and just.... what they wear as an individual.

Or, the partial costume represents unity of a small group, sort of like street gang attire. Objectively, the last thing a gang would do is commit a crime decked out in gang gear. Subjectively, however, the gear represents who they are.

Though two or three 'dissed cos players acting as a quasi gang is probably not very likely, one does not need to be an urban youth to form a gang like mentality and have "badge clothing". An example would be middle aged men with good incomes riding around with a "2% " biker club.

 

[Curiousobserver]

All the speculation on this thread has been terrific. This is an unusual crime where we are missing the crucial pieces to really point us in one direction or another.

It was brutal, personal, and premeditated and at the same time has elements that are cold, efficient, and seemingly random. I really could go either way on this.

My initial thought was this was an enraged stranger, like a crazy person enraged that she put a garage sale sign on her light pole or something. This would explain why they drove by in the days prior, they lived there after-all. The video clearly show's the perp either handing or showing Elizabeth something just before EB jumps back in fear, maybe it was one of EB's own signs. However, I think LE would have identified anybody within a few miles who owned a truck like that and every neighbor would know as well.

There is also every reason to think it was a well planned murder by someone who knew her well; her schedule, her husband's schedule, when she was having a spontaneous garage sale... But with a link that strong, how has LE not been able to connect them to the truck yet? Yes there are a few ways to get an untraceable vehicle but not really common or easy. Occam's razor...

Then there is the cliche version: love triangle or spousal financial motive. Again though, those linkages are usually easy to identify and do on the face appear to be at play here.

The most striking part to me is that, if this person is not one of her neighbors, this person made no effort to conceal their vehicle allowing it to be caught on camera multiple times over multiple days. They drove past again after waking up everyone and drawing their attention; firing 4 shots on a populated street in the quite morning. They then drove slowly out of the neighborhood like they were going to get coffee. Even in a cos-play disguise that would be foolish. Everyone knows what costumes each other has in those groups.

This one is going to have to wait for a tip to come in for LE to break this case.

 

[BaffleMe]

All the speculation on this thread has been terrific. This is an unusual crime where we are missing the crucial pieces to really point us in one direction or another.

It was brutal, personal, and premeditated and at the same time has elements that are cold, efficient, and seemingly random. I really could go either way on this.

My initial thought was this was an enraged stranger, like a crazy person enraged that she put a garage sale sign on her light pole or something. This would explain why they drove by in the days prior, they lived there after-all. The video clearly show's the perp either handing or showing Elizabeth something just before EB jumps back in fear, maybe it was one of EB's own signs. However, I think LE would have identified anybody within a few miles who owned a truck like that and every neighbor would know as well.

There is also every reason to think it was a well planned murder by someone who knew her well; her schedule, her husband's schedule, when she was having a spontaneous garage sale... But with a link that strong, how has LE not been able to connect them to the truck yet? Yes there are a few ways to get an untraceable vehicle but not really common or easy. Occam's razor...

Then there is the cliche version: love triangle or spousal financial motive. Again though, those linkages are usually easy to identify and do on the face appear to be at play here.

The most striking part to me is that, if this person is not one of her neighbors, this person made no effort to conceal their vehicle allowing it to be caught on camera multiple times over multiple days. They drove past again after waking up everyone and drawing their attention; firing 4 shots on a populated street in the quite morning. They then drove slowly out of the neighborhood like they were going to get coffee. Even in a cos-play disguise that would be foolish. Everyone knows what costumes each other has in those groups.

This one is going to have to wait for a tip to come in for LE to break this case.

Yesterday, I had a neighbor talking about people who steal license plates to put on a vehicle they are going to use to commit a crime. That reminded me of this case. Thoughts?

 

[Curiousobserver]

Yesterday, I had a neighbor talking about people who steal license plates to put on a vehicle they are going to use to commit a crime. That reminded me of this case. Thoughts?

Could be. For some reason they didn't care about being seen (seemingly).

I don't know how easy it is for LE to detect stolen plates. Where I live my LE friend tells me that the police cars scan every plate that passes by and alerts them if it is a stolen car/plate. Knowing that I thought that might be a bigger risk than it might actually be.

 

[JnRyan]

Yesterday, I had a neighbor talking about people who steal license plates to put on a vehicle they are going to use to commit a crime. That reminded me of this case. Thoughts?

If we are talking about the amount of advance planning that might be involved here that is a possibility. From what I've read in the media it doesn't appear to be necessary as I haven't heard of the plates being seen on video.

I wonder how many tips LE got from Houston area residents on such a truck. I've got to imagine LE went to the dept of motor vehicles and acquired a list of all such trucks in the Houston area and maybe even Texas. There was a case in Illinois where LE had video of the vehicle the murderer was driving but couldn't read the plates. Yingying Zhang's murder. Although, LE got lucky in that there were only 18 such vehicles registered in the county and the video did show a damaged hubcap on the killer's car.
Murder of Yingying Zhang - Wikipedia

I wonder if LE has spoken to the owner of that truck already. And then there is the possibility the owner was not the killer, but someone who had access to the truck that night and the next morning. Since a body wasn't transported there wouldn't be that forensic evidence. But I wonder about blow back of blood onto the killer and then transferred onto areas of the truck.

 

[JnRyan]

Could be. For some reason they didn't care about being seen (seemingly).

I don't know how easy it is for LE to detect stolen plates. Where I live my LE friend tells me that the police cars scan every plate that passes by and alerts them if it is a stolen car/plate. Knowing that I thought that might be a bigger risk than it might actually be.

And if the plates were stolen OR switched out a day or two before and then switched back it is possible someone would not even notice. If LE noted a particular license was on a blue or red truck and this was a black truck, maybe. But if officers are doing mass scans I would imagine they would only a few seconds at most on each and might only focus on plates REPORTED as stolen.

I do wonder if this killer would actually go to that length for this crime, though. Then again, this appeared to involve at least some degree of advance planning.

 

[Betty P]

If we are talking about the amount of advance planning that might be involved here that is a possibility. From what I've read in the media it doesn't appear to be necessary as I haven't heard of the plates being seen on video.

I wonder how many tips LE got from Houston area residents on such a truck. I've got to imagine LE went to the dept of motor vehicles and acquired a list of all such trucks in the Houston area and maybe even Texas. There was a case in Illinois where LE had video of the vehicle the murderer was driving but couldn't read the plates. Yingying Zhang's murder. Although, LE got lucky in that there were only 18 such vehicles registered in the county and the video did show a damaged hubcap on the killer's car.
Murder of Yingying Zhang - Wikipedia

I wonder if LE has spoken to the owner of that truck already. And then there is the possibility the owner was not the killer, but someone who had access to the truck that night and the next morning. Since a body wasn't transported there wouldn't be that forensic evidence. But I wonder about blow back of blood onto the killer and then transferred onto areas of the truck.

One of my theories is that LE has identified the truck and has spoken with the owner. They may have "lawyered up" and, without enough evidence, LE is stymied and hoping for other friends, co-workers, witnesses, etc. to come forward with some information or evidence that will allow them to get search warrants and to question the suspect.

I'd like to see Crime Stoppers of Houston develop a digital flyer about the case (there currently is none) and allow everyone to distribute it online, in social media, etc. Perhaps distribute the flyer (including info about the reward) to people in the online cosplay/Star Wars community or other social media spots where Elizabeth frequented. For all we know, this could have been a person who was so unhinged and angry that they traveled from another state to stalk Elizabeth and kill her.

Does anyone here live in Houston? Would anyone be willing to get in touch with Crime Stoppers of Houston to ask them to update their web site to include a listing for Elizabeth (there is none) and to share a flyer about her murder that we can distribute?

 

[JnRyan]

Wow! I spoke too soon about truck lists from dept of motor vehicles. The Nissan Frontier - all models - has sales of 50K to 70K per year. With Texas population (29 million) being approx. 8%-9% of USA pop (330 million) that could mean anywhere from 4.8K to 6.5K sold in TX every year.
Nissan Frontier Sales Figures

The Pro-4x became an option in 2009. Of course, with LE adding the attributes of color (black), model (Pro-4x), area (Houston and surrounding counties) and maybe a year range that would narrow it down. But that would still be a massive list to go through. Although, I can't imagine the Pro-4x being that common as it is the most expensive version of the Frontier.

 

[BINGOdinoDNA]

One of my theories is that LE has identified the truck and has spoken with the owner. They may have "lawyered up" and, without enough evidence, LE is stymied and hoping for other friends, co-workers, witnesses, etc. to come forward with some information or evidence that will allow them to get search warrants and to question the suspect.

I'd like to see Crime Stoppers of Houston develop a digital flyer about the case (there currently is none) and allow everyone to distribute it online, in social media, etc. Perhaps distribute the flyer (including info about the reward) to people in the online cosplay/Star Wars community or other social media spots where Elizabeth frequented. For all we know, this could have been a person who was so unhinged and angry that they traveled from another state to stalk Elizabeth and kill her.

Does anyone here live in Houston? Would anyone be willing to get in touch with Crime Stoppers of Houston to ask them to update their web site to include a listing for Elizabeth (there is none) and to share a flyer about her murder that we can distribute?

I would also like to see the information updated, but this is the flyer made shortly after her murder.

 

[Curiousobserver]

Wow! I spoke too soon about truck lists from dept of motor vehicles. The Nissan Frontier - all models - has sales of 50K to 70K per year. With Texas population (29 million) being approx. 8%-9% of USA pop (330 million) that could mean anywhere from 4.8K to 6.5K sold in TX every year.
Nissan Frontier Sales Figures

The Pro-4x became an option in 2009. Of course, with LE adding the attributes of color (black), model (Pro-4x), area (Houston and surrounding counties) and maybe a year range that would narrow it down. But that would still be a massive list to go through. Although, I can't imagine the Pro-4x being that common as it is the most expensive version of the Frontier.

The more you think about it, without the valid plate # belonging to the murder it would be very hard to link the truck.

LE could check the list of registered owners against any names given to them by her friends and family- but none of them know anybody with a truck like this or they would have spoken up about it already.

Any of her friends, coworkers, or acquaintances that own a truck like this would be known by now.

If you don't have the plate #, you would have to look for the long shot traffic ticket in the area, toll booth, or convenience store visit using a credit card....etc

 

[JnRyan]

I had one scenario that I've mentioned before where such a vehicle could be used without the owner's knowledge. When I was in the military and not married I left my car(s) with someone. Either parents or a friend. One such friend lived about 6 hours away. One possibility with military bases in Texas - NAS Corpus Christi, Ft. Sam Houston, Jt Base Randolph, Ft. Hood - is that a deployed soldier, sailor or airman could have left their vehicle with a friend or relative in the Houston area. If this happened, the vehicle would be back at the military base and out of the Houston area, possibly within a few months time. There are other scenarios that might involve a person on a long term business trip out of the country or recuperating from surgery or other health issue and unable to drive.

I also wonder if that truck has been sold by now, possibly to someone outside the state of Texas. Of course, one way for LE to narrow that dept of motor vehicle list would be to ask for a listing of any black Nissan Frontier Pro-4x's sold by owners in TX since the murder.

 

[JnRyan]

LE could check the list of registered owners against any names given to them by her friends and family- but none of them know anybody with a truck like this or they would have spoken up about it already.

Any of her friends, coworkers, or acquaintances that own a truck like this would be known by now.

This is what makes me think that this killer had access to this vehicle, but didn't necessarily own it. And possibly was not seen driving it in the time before and after the crime. IOW, there is no known connection for the friends, coworkers, family and others within Elizabeth's sphere to be able to provide to LE. I can't get over how this killer seems to have no apparent concern about being seen driving up to the scene. Either they were very bold and lucky or they were very confident that vehicle would not be linked to them.

 

[adelynschmidt]

One of my theories is that LE has identified the truck and has spoken with the owner. They may have "lawyered up" and, without enough evidence, LE is stymied and hoping for other friends, co-workers, witnesses, etc. to come forward with some information or evidence that will allow them to get search warrants and to question the suspect.

I'd like to see Crime Stoppers of Houston develop a digital flyer about the case (there currently is none) and allow everyone to distribute it online, in social media, etc. Perhaps distribute the flyer (including info about the reward) to people in the online cosplay/Star Wars community or other social media spots where Elizabeth frequented. For all we know, this could have been a person who was so unhinged and angry that they traveled from another state to stalk Elizabeth and kill her.

Does anyone here live in Houston? Would anyone be willing to get in touch with Crime Stoppers of Houston to ask them to update their web site to include a listing for Elizabeth (there is none) and to share a flyer about her murder that we can distribute?

I'm in Houston, I can definitely try to see if they can update the website, I'd even do it for them lol! Having something to distribute on social media could really help to reach the people who might have info.

I'm just baffled this is still unsolved, there was an update at the beginning of this year & it seemed like they have some potential persons of interest they were working on investigating but I haven't seen anything since then...

 

[Cryptic]

My initial thought was this was an enraged stranger, like a crazy person enraged that she put a garage sale sign on her light pole or something.

Though this is possible, I dont think it is very likely for the following reasons:

- Nobody recognized the shooter as the local crazy or the truck as belonging to, or being associated with a local crazy.

- Lack of a build up: Though it is possible to seethe in silence, then explode, I think that most "rager" crimes feature build ups. For example, rager was known to tear down garage sale signs, becomes the resident expert on garage sale ordinances- then complains repeatedly to the city about violations.

Or, calls makes calls to police about customers illegally parking cars. Maybe "advises" holders that garage sales attract shady customers, crime etc.

- Lack of "double down" or "over the top" conduct by the victim: The victim held one low key garage sale a year. Thus, less likely to attract the attention of a quiet rager.

In contrast the victim was not say, running a commercial second had store from their front yard by having weekly "garage sales" with associated crowds. Thus, would be more likely to attract a quiet rager.

 

[iamnotagolem]

This is what makes me think that this killer had access to this vehicle, but didn't necessarily own it. And possibly was not seen driving it in the time before and after the crime. IOW, there is no known connection for the friends, coworkers, family and others within Elizabeth's sphere to be able to provide to LE. I can't get over how this killer seems to have no apparent concern about being seen driving up to the scene. Either they were very bold and lucky or they were very confident that vehicle would not be linked to them.

In response to your last sentence, this has been my theory all along. Someone had access to the vehicle but knew it wasn’t linked to them. Most likely the owner doesn’t know the vehicle was used. Maybe the killer doesn’t even know the owner of the vehicle maybe he heard about it’s availability through a friend.

I have a friend who owns a truck, he lends it without hesitation to anyone who needs it. His wife is disabled so if someone needs it while he is at work he just leaves the keys in it. I’ve never used his truck or asked to use his truck. But I’m confident I could go and use his truck while he is at work and no one would ever know.

In all honesty it doesn’t even need to be that convoluted. The killer could have taken a vehicle for a test drive overnight. Maybe that’s why they weren’t concerned about it being on camera. They picked it up the night before, dropped it off after the killing.

It could be the killer works in an auto shop and used a customers vehicle.

when you think about it the possibilities are endless.