TX TX - Elizabeth Barraza, 29, murdered setting up garage sale, Harris Co, Jan 2019 #6

[PawneeDew]

I'm sure it's been said before at some point, but where she was shot can give us possible clues as to the motive.

Shooting someone in the face/mouth suggests to me that the shooter either wanted to ruin the victims face or, if in the mouth, to signify silencing them.

I definitely feel as though the case will be solved one day, hopefully soon. In my opinion only, the murderer it is a woman scorned.

Interesting. I've had the same thoughts about placement of shots and other stuff....

 

[lonewanderer]

Interesting. I've had the same thoughts about placement of shots and other stuff....

I think it was simply just to make sure Liz was dead, because Liz knew them and could identify them if she survived.

 

[hexicon]

I think it was simply just to make sure Liz was dead, because Liz knew them and could identify them if she survived.

Agreed. I think this person was shooting point blank with the intention of causing death. I don't think they were trying to or capable of sending a message by targeting a shot to any particular body part.

 

[NoSpoonFeeding]

I have wondered if Liz witnessed some type of embezzlement from 501st charity funds.

Wearing Star Wars costumes to help Make A Wish raise money, or see children in hospitals, wouldn't have put EB in a position to see anyone embezzle from charity funds. Their purpose is to be Star Wars fans and help other charities make money. I would think access to any money would have to be through their headquarters in CA. If you go to the donation page on the 501st website, it lets you donate to Make A Wish.

From their website:

The 501st Legion is a worldwide Star Wars costuming organization comprised of and operated by Star Wars fans.
"While we do not charge a fee for appearances (public or private), we enthusiastically welcome donations made to your favorite charity in the name of the 501st Legion.
Having participated at events throughout the world for nearly a decade, the 501st name alone has been known to boost attendance and media attention."

 

[AppleTreeGreen]

I hope so. A .380 revolver is a weird gang gun but that does make it distinct enough to be on LE radar for a ballistics match.

Gangbangers like those 9mm...blasters....but any gun in the gang/crime world is valuable: to sell.


This gun is not made for a drive-by. It is a self-defense gun. That is why the gun IMO is distinct. It isn't just my opinion. Most MODERN DAY revolvers are not .380's. It is either an antique gun; a pocket pistol, or another caliber revolver that has been suited/customized to hold .380 ammo (I would not risk doing this)....but it would be smart.

I was so struck by this and I COULD be wrong but I have asked many people. I even called the HCSO Pct. 4 Public Information officer on Friday to verify it was not a typo by the news - no return call yet. Does anyone have a link to a video?

Edited to add: Does anyone with eagle eyes or better vision see how long the barrel of the gun is? A self-defense CCW weapon barrel would be mere inches.

I read too on the site below that the .380 is the preferred gun recommended to women looking to arm themselves for self-defense too.

The Well Armed Woman is under construction

Where the Feminine and Firearms Meet

thewellarmedwoman.com

 

[BlaiseFinlay]

Whether innocent or guilty, I still can't make sense of SB publicly accusing his father (source: Paula Zahn episode/A Fairy Tale Ruined) Only way I can make any sense of it is if LE was behind it and they were aiming to "tickle the wires."

I was also thinking of how you could hire a hit man without leaving a financial trail, <modsnip: not victim friendly>

Out of curiosity, do we know if/when the father paid SB the money he was owed for the bounced paychecks?

 

[x_files]

Whether innocent or guilty, I still can't make sense of SB publicly accusing his father (source: Paula Zahn episode/A Fairy Tale Ruined) Only way I can make any sense of it is if LE was behind it and they were aiming to "tickle the wires."

I was also thinking of how you could hire a hit man without leaving a financial trail, <modsnip>

Out of curiosity, do we know if/when the father paid SB the money he was owed for the bounced paychecks?

Using a burner phone you could contact a hitman, or send a message through a third party.

 

[NoSpoonFeeding]

I read too on the site below that the .380 is the preferred gun recommended to women looking to arm themselves for self-defense too.

The Well Armed Woman is under construction

Where the Feminine and Firearms Meet

thewellarmedwoman.com

Just FYI, the article you linked is about semi-auto pistols, not revolvers.
The gun used to kill EB was a revolver and the caliber has not been confirmed.

 

[BlaiseFinlay]

Using a burner phone you could contact a hitman, or send a message through a third party.

Yep. The money is the trickier piece, unless planned over a very long period of time (allowing you to accumulate substantial cash without any unusual activity...like a hit man mattress savings account...), which I have to assume was not the case.

 

[arielilane]

It's really interesting for a couple who were cautious people would still conduct a garage sale with only one of those people being present during the early morning hours when it is still dark out. Curious who wanted Liz to have the garage sale? It could have been postponed until returning from Orlando trip... right?

Liz's father, Bob, initially would have been at the garage sale, though he changed his mind due to his own concerns about (info confirmed by Liz's parents) seeking employment.

moo

 

[arielilane]

Dec. 2023

• Texas Rangers, the FBI and the Texas Anti-Gang Unit join Barraza’s case.
• Detectives confirmed they had gathered new leads but did not go into detail.

Nearly 5 years later and no suspect: A timeline of the Tomball woman killed while setting up for garage sale

Updated: December 12, 2023 at 7:28 AM

 

[iusedtofloat]

Dec. 2023

• Texas Rangers, the FBI and the Texas Anti-Gang Unit join Barraza’s case.
• Detectives confirmed they had gathered new leads but did not go into detail.

Nearly 5 years later and no suspect: A timeline of the Tomball woman killed while setting up for garage sale

Updated: December 12, 2023 at 7:28 AM

very interesting! Her parents Also updated the Liz site. Timeline

 

[iusedtofloat]

It's really interesting for a couple who were cautious people would still conduct a garage sale with only one of those people being present during the early morning hours when it is still dark out. Curious who wanted Liz to have the garage sale? It could have been postponed until returning from Orlando trip... right?

Liz's father, Bob, initially would have been at the garage sale, though he changed his mind due to his own concerns about (info confirmed by Liz's parents) seeking employment.

moo

It could've been postponed, but according to Liz's mom, Liz and Sergio had spent the days before putting up posters for it around the neighborhood. I find this interesting and would like to know if she has ever done this in the past (this referring to the posters OR the garage sale I suppose)

I wonder about this, because whoever showed up had to be "ready" to kill whomever was there, OR had steady updates on Liz from a very close source, and the fact they waited until she was alone with a very CLOSE timeline leads me to feel the second choice is more likely myself.

 

[fridaybaker]

It's really interesting for a couple who were cautious people would still conduct a garage sale with only one of those people being present during the early morning hours when it is still dark out. Curious who wanted Liz to have the garage sale? It could have been postponed until returning from Orlando trip... right?

Liz's father, Bob, initially would have been at the garage sale, though he changed his mind due to his own concerns about (info confirmed by Liz's parents) seeking employment.

moo

This is very hard to gauge, as everyone is different. I wouldn't be out there on my own in a million years in the still, dark of early morning. I wouldn't think Liz, would either, considering how cautious she apparently was, as you mentioned above. Maybe, though, it's a different sort of "cautious"? Maybe Liz (and others her age) feel very secure with technology in place, such as cell phones, home alarms, etc.

 

[lonewanderer]

Whether innocent or guilty, I still can't make sense of SB publicly accusing his father (source: Paula Zahn episode/A Fairy Tale Ruined) Only way I can make any sense of it is if LE was behind it and they were aiming to "tickle the wires."

I was also thinking of how you could hire a hit man without leaving a financial trail, <modsnip: not victim friendly>

Out of curiosity, do we know if/when the father paid SB the money he was owed for the bounced paychecks?

Yep. The money is the trickier piece, unless planned over a very long period of time (allowing you to accumulate substantial cash without any unusual activity...like a hit man mattress savings account...), which I have to assume was not the case.

I have responded to similar posts countless times in other threads.

Hitmen are usually total doofuses who will carry out the murder for very little money. It takes risk off the person seeking the hit, doesn't leave much of a paper trail, and can keep distance between the seeker and the hitman. The person seeking the hits are usually super cheap and don't think things through very well. There have been multiple instances of a hitman killing the wrong person. Mary Morris murders, Daniel Ott, and Don Johnston all come to mind (there was a woman on a true crime show named Jane Martin but I believe that was just a fantasized twist on Mary Morris case. If it wasn't then YIKES!).

There is also on case that took place in the 80s or so. A guy hired his Vietnam vet buddy to kill his estranged wife. He snuck into her house with a ski mask and knife, and when she saw him, she ran at him full speed. She was a very large woman and pinned him up against the wall. Then he fell down the stairs and died. Crazy! But goes to show common quality of "hitmen". The expensive ones found online are 99.99% cops.

But to answer your question about alternate payments. There was a plot where a woman got her boyfriend to kill her ex-husband by hiring a hitman of sorts. The boyfriend was a landlord, and offered free rent for life if one of his tenants carried out the hit. Guess what? The BF is in jail and the woman is running around totally free.

 

[AppleTreeGreen]

Just FYI, the article you linked is about semi-auto pistols, not revolvers.
The gun used to kill EB was a revolver and the caliber has not been confirmed.

I was actually linking that section of the site because it goes into detail about why women often prefer .380 guns in general and then on that page it continues to pistols and then links to the article about .380 revolvers at the bottom.

I could just link an article that is more straightforward.

Low-Pro Holsters - Product Lines - HOLSTERS

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[BlaiseFinlay]

Yep. The money is the trickier piece, unless planned over a very long period of time (allowing you to accumulate substantial cash without any unusual activity...like a hit man mattress savings account...), which I have to assume was not the case.

Here's a hypothetical, which is essentially a description of a type of money laundering.

Suspect A wants Liz dead, and wants a hit man to do it. Let's say the cost for an unprofessional hit is $10,000 (not a Cartel-level hit man, just a shady person with access to a gun who values cash more than a stranger's life. I really don't know the going rate).

Suspect B is the previously described hit man.
Suspect C is a co-conspirator who is close to Suspect A and willing to help. Suspect C knows Suspect B from having hired him previously for work. Or finds him through connections. This hypothetical works best if Suspect C has a business, but any individual can "hire" someone for an odd job around the house, so it's not essential.

Suspect B then submits false or, ideally, inflated invoices for work performed for Suspect C, ultimately invoicing Suspect C $10,000 more than Suspect B is owed for the work performed. Suspect C pays the invoice. You've now also conveniently laundered the money for Suspect B as well, decreasing their risk exposure in the process.*

Suspect A then repays Suspect C through another seemingly legitimate means, such as agreeing to receive a bad checks for any money owed up to $10k, informally agreeing to forgive up to $10k of any debt that Suspect C may owe Suspect A, or any other transaction that is on the surface normal for the type of relationship between Suspect A and C. Just as an example, I regularly take trips with a friend. Usually, we split the costs 50/50, though in the past I've paid 100% when I'm the one who really wants the trip and just want company. I could "pay" my friend $3k without leaving a suspicious paper trail by paying for 100% of a $6k trip we take together.

Detecting this type of payment scheme requires a far deeper analysis than just looking for a suspicious transfer from Suspect A's bank account, and if the scheme was concocted through in person conversations, it can really never be proven through documents. You need to get at Suspect A, B, or C through another means, then get them to take a deal in exchange for flipping on the other two suspects.

Might seem farfetched, but I can't think of any scenario in this case that isn't farfetched based on what we know.

(*To the extent the person won't have an unexplained deposit and won't be committing tax fraud, so fewer law enforcement agencies likely to be investigating. Obviously, adding such layers of complexity to a crime results in committing an additional crime in and of itself, and can create its own risks.)

 

[BlaiseFinlay]

I have responded to similar posts countless times in other threads.

Hitmen are usually total doofuses who will carry out the murder for very little money. It takes risk off the person seeking the hit, doesn't leave much of a paper trail, and can keep distance between the seeker and the hitman. The person seeking the hits are usually super cheap and don't think things through very well. There have been multiple instances of a hitman killing the wrong person. Mary Morris murders, Daniel Ott, and Don Johnston all come to mind (there was a woman on a true crime show named Jane Martin but I believe that was just a fantasized twist on Mary Morris case. If it wasn't then YIKES!).

There is also on case that took place in the 80s or so. A guy hired his Vietnam vet buddy to kill his estranged wife. He snuck into her house with a ski mask and knife, and when she saw him, she ran at him full speed. She was a very large woman and pinned him up against the wall. Then he fell down the stairs and died. Crazy! But goes to show common quality of "hitmen". The expensive ones found online are 99.99% cops.

But to answer your question about alternate payments. There was a plot where a woman got her boyfriend to kill her ex-husband by hiring a hitman of sorts. The boyfriend was a landlord, and offered free rent for life if one of his tenants carried out the hit. Guess what? The BF is in jail and the woman is running around totally free.

Mistaken identity remains a frustrating possibility.

 

[BlaiseFinlay]

I have responded to similar posts countless times in other threads.

Hitmen are usually total doofuses who will carry out the murder for very little money. It takes risk off the person seeking the hit, doesn't leave much of a paper trail, and can keep distance between the seeker and the hitman. The person seeking the hits are usually super cheap and don't think things through very well. There have been multiple instances of a hitman killing the wrong person. Mary Morris murders, Daniel Ott, and Don Johnston all come to mind (there was a woman on a true crime show named Jane Martin but I believe that was just a fantasized twist on Mary Morris case. If it wasn't then YIKES!).

There is also on case that took place in the 80s or so. A guy hired his Vietnam vet buddy to kill his estranged wife. He snuck into her house with a ski mask and knife, and when she saw him, she ran at him full speed. She was a very large woman and pinned him up against the wall. Then he fell down the stairs and died. Crazy! But goes to show common quality of "hitmen". The expensive ones found online are 99.99% cops.

But to answer your question about alternate payments. There was a plot where a woman got her boyfriend to kill her ex-husband by hiring a hitman of sorts. The boyfriend was a landlord, and offered free rent for life if one of his tenants carried out the hit. Guess what? The BF is in jail and the woman is running around totally free.

I've read before that example you mentioned (probably in another of your posts), and that's exactly what got me thinking of what a possible scenario could be! Because I had been stuck on this piece of the puzzle. I outlined one possible scenario that was deleted for not being victim friendly, but I reframed it in a way that speaks in general terms without referencing anybody in particular and reposted it.

Not saying it's my leading theory, but a possibility. Nothing really rises above possibility in my eyes in this case.

 

[lonewanderer]

Mistaken identity remains a frustrating possibility.

In this case? I have my doubts. They walked right up to her face, at her house.

I am zoned in on a particular person who may have had motive to kill Liz.