TX TX - Elizabeth Barraza, 29, murdered setting up garage sale, Harris Co, Jan 2019 #7

[OneLove]

Correct. But someone had footage of the truck prowling that neighborhood at 2:30 in the morning. This shows that this was much more methodically planned than it originally seems.

Or it could be that she had an unpleasant incident with a hot headed smart azz while posting her garage sale signs in the area the day before. Just follow the signs; thats easy enough even without the address. An injustice collector or road rage kinda guy could easily cruise the streets stewing all night on rage provoking stimulants just waiting for her to open that garage door first thing in the morning.

 

[sunspun]

Oh I thought she went to Starbucks around 6:30 am before the garage sale? That is what was said on the podcast.

Yes, I don't remember the exact time, but you're right, she made a quick run to Starbucks right before the sale was supposed to start.

But I was talking about the theory you brought up about this possibly stemming from a road rage type of incident. At first thought, it would seem this wouldn't be likely, since we know the same truck was seen on video driving by Liz's house in the middle of the night before that morning's shooting. So it wouldn't be something that happened that very morning, like say during her Starbucks run, that led to the shooting.

But I was saying that it still could be possible that as you mentioned, a road rage type of incident could still be the reason she was shot, but only if it had happened sometime prior to the night before the shooting. What if she somehow made some short-fused person angry on her drive to or from work the day or 2 before the shooting? They could have followed her home or close to home without her even knowing. Then came back and shot her. Maybe they didn't actually follow her all the way home, but after they got mad at her for whatever reason, they went home and stewed about it, getting even madder, and decided to get revenge. So they went out that night before the shooting, and drove around in the area where they had last seen her, looking for her car, trying to find out where she lived, which would fit what we know they've seen on video from that night, before eventually finding her car parked outside her house. Now they knew where she lived. So they came back early in the morning and when they saw her outside, they got out and shot her.

This could be possible if the hypothetical road rage incident happened close to her home, AND when she was on her way in to work one morning. Because then the perp would know approximately what time she could be expected to leave for work, after having seen her on her way to work the morning of the road rage event. And if that event happened say, right as she left her neighborhood, they would know what neighborhood she likely lived in. Probably wouldn't take too long driving around the area looking for her car before they found it and would then know where she lived. And they'd know when she would be leaving for work, based on what time they saw her driving to work that previous day, since most people have regular work schedules, like she did. They could have found her house the night before and come back in the morning, waiting within sight of the house for her to come out. Then drove up, parked, got out and shot her.

I'm just trying to figure out how the garage sale fits in to this theory. So if it was something like this, then it was just a coincidence that she happened to be outside setting up the sale that morning. They would have been expecting her to leave for work, since they wouldn't know about the sale. But either way would have worked, not much difference for their purposes. Would have worked even better for them, in fact.

But would it also just have been a happy accident that they happened to arrive just after Sergio left? I don't want any one theory to require too many coincidences for it to work. But no, if they had parked nearby to wait for her to come out, they would have seen the van leaving, and assume that she was left there alone at that time. So they'd leave their spot as soon as the van left, which is exactly what we know they did. Except that they left their spot when the van left the house, but they didn't go right to the house at that time. They parked again nearby, waited I think a few minutes and then left for the house.

So there's one problem with that theory. IIRC, while they were parked in the school parking lot, they weren't in a position where they could see the house. So leaving the school at the same time that the van left the house would require another coincidence, which is probably at least one too many!

So it seems to me that's probably not what happened, although I do think it's possible, and AFAIK, it's not something people have theorized about, but I may just have missed it if it's already been brought up. I still do think it's worth considering that Liz and the shooter may not have actually known each other or had any mutual connections at all. All I've ever seen people talk about is theories that include only Liz knowing the shooter or someone Liz knows sending the shooter, except for people who wonder if it was some kind of gang initiation, in which Liz and the shooter would be strangers to each other in every way, but that isn't a possibility in my mind, mainly because of the recon the night before.

So this is still something to think about, even if it happened differently from how I described it. The hardest cases to solve I've always heard are stranger murders, since there simply are no connections to be made, so where do you even start the investigation? Easy to end up an unsolved cold case like Liz's unfortunately seems to have become, when there's no relationship between the perp and the victim. And the scenario I imagined above (inspired by @Lisalong 's mention of a possible road rage event!) is one that doesn't require any relationship between Liz and the shooter. Which is the first time I've personally considered that that might be true. I had been leaning toward the shooter being someone sent by someone close to Liz, but had reservations about that too.

 

[Sjöberg]

Just throwing it out here, that I recently heard about the murder of Lauren Landavazo and got thinking about how victims might sometimes not even know that there is a crazy person obsessed with them. Given the charisma of Liz and her wide social circle via charity and cosplay, there might be someone in her peripheral network who had a whole story in their head that Liz was totally unaware of.

 

[Rosydecember]

I personally think that we don’t know much about how the garage sale was organized. The police definitely does.

It could have been a PTO day taken for a different purpose, but that original purpose could have been moved. (Why am I thinking, a doctor’s or a dental appointment?) So, “since I took a PTO, I can do a garage sale” plan. It could have been not the last moment sale but a decision made several days prior, when the initial plan was moved.

Now, there is some information about the father planning to be with Liz and then his plans changing. Mother said in the interview that she was not an early riser, but planned to join Liz at 10 or 11 am.

Question is, why not start the sale at 11 AM then?

The way I can imagine it being resolved is Sergio planning to stay with Liz in the morning in the time gap till mom would come. And it seemingly starts that way. Liz drives to Starbucks, they start setting up the table, no one is in a morning rush! And then Sergio leaves. We don’t see it on camera. This is the moment when, honestly, something feels amiss.

Staying alone in the morning in the darkness outside doesn’t feel comfortable. I am trying to put myself into the shoes of Liz and the word “alone” feels wrong.

So maybe one day we’ll know more. When did Liz talk to the parents, who/when enabled the alarm in the morning, at what time? What did Liz say to her parents about that block of time when she was to be alone?

I can very well imagine dad saying, “I have a phone interview scheduled in the morning”, or “the recruiter promised to call within this time slot.” Because this is a typical human behavior. But usually, the daughter’s response would be to ask the husband, hey, can you start the sale with me till mom comes?

Am I missing something?

Idk, she’s an adult. By insinuating that someone should have been with her at all times, never for her to be alone, is slightly odd to me. If someone wanted to kill Liz, and she wasn’t alone that morning, they would have found another opportunity. Moo

 

[CrimeTheorist]

Most people don't stand and wait all alone in the dark beside a side street very often. It was a perfect opportunity to shoot someone and escape in a vehicle. I don't think this shooting would have happened if the garage sale started at... let's say 7:30. At that time the sun would have been up, so we would have better video of the suspect and their vehicle.

 

[Charlot123]

Idk, she’s an adult. By insinuating that someone should have been with her at all times, never for her to be alone, is slightly odd to me. If someone wanted to kill Liz, and she wasn’t alone that morning, they would have found another opportunity. Moo

On Liz’s site, whokilledlizbarraza, there is a link to her parents’ interview. Liz’s mom says when she lived in Illinois, there were many reports about kids being abducted, so she raised Liz and her sibling hyper aware of their surroundings. That doesn’t bode well, for me, with standing alone, on a dark street, starting a sale.

 

[aliensporebomb]

Or it could be that she had an unpleasant incident with a hot headed smart azz while posting her garage sale signs in the area the day before. Just follow the signs; thats easy enough even without the address. An injustice collector or road rage kinda guy could easily cruise the streets stewing all night on rage provoking stimulants just waiting for her to open that garage door first thing in the morning.

Good call - and it's possible it may have happened sometime before that, maybe an encounter she forgot all about.

I keep thinking that the back of that black pickup had the gate down with trim or conduit sticking out the back. There's something about that detail that bothers me. Did someone borrow a family member's truck to commit the crime and return it before they were aware?

 

[arielilane]

Oh I thought she went to Starbucks around 6:30 am before the garage sale? That is what was said on the podcast.

Hi @Lisalong, the time Liz left her home to drive to Starbucks is linked below:

• Early Morning [06:08:15 AM] Liz drives to the local Starbucks to get a coffee.

Timeline

default description

www.whokilledlizbarraza.com

 

[arielilane]

Tomball woman to be honored in memorial 6 years after her unsolved murder

It's been six years since a Tomball-area woman was gunned down in her driveway while setting up for a garage sale, and her murder remains unsolved.

abc13.com

January 24, 2025

 

[somequestions]

Most people don't stand and wait all alone in the dark beside a side street very often. It was a perfect opportunity to shoot someone and escape in a vehicle. I don't think this shooting would have happened if the garage sale started at... let's say 7:30. At that time the sun would have been up, so we would have better video of the suspect and their vehicle.

Who is going to know when you leave for work every day and at what time? People that see you leave for work every day.

But when you look at the video surveillance evidence in this case everything tends to point away from that theory. There is surveillance video of the Nissan Frontier Pro-4x driving around at 2 am in the morning before the murder? What purpose did that serve? The murderer did not think the garage sale was going to start at 2 am or that Elizabeth would be setting up for it at 2 am?! Were they looking for garage sale signs at 2 am?

Could they have gotten the Barraza address from an internet search or the phone book? Could they have surveilled the streets in the neighborhood by using google maps?

Yet I read the detectives in this case traveled to Florida. There must be information that LE has that we do not know.

The only perspective we get is the one based on the evidence that has been made available to the public. The Starbucks coffee run might not have happened every day so Elizabeth might have been at Starbucks while the murderer was out retrieving the Nissan Frontier Pro-4X. I think the murderer would be smart enough to realize using their everyday vehicle would not be a good idea so I think the Nissan Frontier Pro-4X was used for only the crime then put back away somewhere after the crime, but not too far away (based on what I think was useless 2 am surveillance).

But having an extra vehicle simply to commit murder seems like a lot of planning. Maybe at the time of the crime the murderer did not have a vehicle they kept at their residence, or they used public transportation? It is sad this case has not been solved.

 

[FromGermany1]

Who is going to know when you leave for work every day and at what time? People that see you leave for work every day.

But when you look at the video surveillance evidence in this case everything tends to point away from that theory. There is surveillance video of the Nissan Frontier Pro-4x driving around at 2 am in the morning before the murder? What purpose did that serve? The murderer did not think the garage sale was going to start at 2 am or that Elizabeth would be setting up for it at 2 am?! Were they looking for garage sale signs at 2 am?

Could they have gotten the Barraza address from an internet search or the phone book? Could they have surveilled the streets in the neighborhood by using google maps?

Yet I read the detectives in this case traveled to Florida. There must be information that LE has that we do not know.

The only perspective we get is the one based on the evidence that has been made available to the public. The Starbucks coffee run might not have happened every day so Elizabeth might have been at Starbucks while the murderer was out retrieving the Nissan Frontier Pro-4X. I think the murderer would be smart enough to realize using their everyday vehicle would not be a good idea so I think the Nissan Frontier Pro-4X was used for only the crime then put back away somewhere after the crime, but not too far away (based on what I think was useless 2 am surveillance).

But having an extra vehicle simply to commit murder seems like a lot of planning. Maybe at the time of the crime the murderer did not have a vehicle they kept at their residence, or they used public transportation? It is sad this case has not been solved.

bbm
As far as I remember, LE visited a Florida address because of Sergio's father and his connection/s (mistress/es). I wouldn't be surprised at all, if a woman (namely not father's wife) was the commissioner for a hitman. It would make the most of sense to me. The commissioner would have eliminated a "troublemaker", Sergio's father could have robbed Sergio out of his money (life insurance), and the woman in the background would have had better future prospects all in all (she thought perhaps). All MOO and speculation.

 

[lonewanderer]

bbm
As far as I remember, LE visited a Florida address because of Sergio's father and his connection/s (mistress/es). I wouldn't be surprised at all, if a woman (namely not father's wife) was the commissioner for a hitman. It would make the most of sense to me. The commissioner would have eliminated a "troublemaker", Sergio's father could have robbed Sergio out of his money (life insurance), and the woman in the background would have had better future prospects all in all (she thought perhaps). All MOO and speculation.

When I made the comparison list for people who were shot in their driveways, nearly every one of them involved a revolver and nearly every one of them involved a woman masterminding the whole hit.

 

[Charlot123]

bbm
As far as I remember, LE visited a Florida address because of Sergio's father and his connection/s (mistress/es). I wouldn't be surprised at all, if a woman (namely not father's wife) was the commissioner for a hitman. It would make the most of sense to me. The commissioner would have eliminated a "troublemaker", Sergio's father could have robbed Sergio out of his money (life insurance), and the woman in the background would have had better future prospects all in all (she thought perhaps). All MOO and speculation.

Well, that of course could explain a lot. Dad could ask Sergio to drive to work. Easily. Also, who could have access to Nest camera? If you can log into someone's Google account, then, easily.

Was Nest camera checked? How did it work?

 

[imstilla.grandma]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1882547137831203259

 

[arielilane]

@akahancrimesto1


Media Alert: Tonight on Fox News at 9 PM we take a deep dive into the unsolved murder of Liz Barraza now going on 6 years. A special park bench dedication sponsored by Harris County Pct 3 Commissioner Tom Ramsey will be held this Thursday The public is invited to join us at 10AM

https://twitter.com/x/status/1884047195998998880

 

[Duper's Delight]

Anniversary coverage local Houston Fox News: Family seeking justice 6 years after loved one's killing​

Barraza's loved ones (Bob & Rosemary) say they will never stay silent until she receives justice and the difference with our case is the thing that's made the difference is we never stopped getting publicity. And every time we do a piece like this, the tip line will light up.

Andy Kahn/Crimestoppers: There is no statute of limitation on murder. This will always be out there. So no one is ever going to give up.

Sergio Barraza: says he fights to maintain his innocence. I've always kept Liz in my heart and I always will but I've kept going in my life trying to think of somebody who did this to her that might be close to me, that I might be friends with, that I might live with. I have no idea. I've not been okay with it, but there's just nothing I can do about it.

I've just continued to show that I'm an open book to the police and that I'm here to do whatever I can to solve this.

 

[CrimeTheorist]

Wow! SB said he tries to think of who would do this to her and the third guess he mentions is someone he lives with.

 

[FromGermany1]

Well, that of course could explain a lot. Dad could ask Sergio to drive to work. Easily. Also, who could have access to Nest camera? If you can log into someone's Google account, then, easily.

Was Nest camera checked? How did it work?

We didn't hear of manipulated cameras/videos at Liz' home, afaik. Would we learn of it by LE or rather not?

 

[arielilane]

SB says "he fights to maintain his innocence" - why not fight to found out what happened to your wife?

... and "that I might live with?" Was that a slip up?

My understanding is hes never been named as a person of interest...

moo

Family seeking justice 6 years after loved one's killing

Six years after her death, the family of Liz Barraza is speaking out about her death.

www.fox26houston.com

 

[CrimeTheorist]

Does anyone know if SB lives with any family members? Like his father? Or was the reference about having doubts about someone he lives with about his wife? Because it's strange he already told police he thought his dad could possibly be responsible and now it sounds like he's had doubts about his wife, whom he claimed to have not known at the time of EB's murder.