The Mysterious Case of Elizabeth ‘Liz’ Barraza
Often, solving a murder is like assembling a puzzle, as investigators try to piece together
what happened in the hours, days, and weeks before a victim’s demise. But in the case of
29-year-old Elizabeth Barraza, much of the puzzle was assembled already: her murder was caught on
camera. When Elizabeth was attacked just outside her home in Tomball, Texas on January 25th,
2019, security cameras from her neighbors’ homes captured the entire event on video. However,
despite the existence of these grisly security recordings, Elizabeth’s killer has not been caught
in the year since the crime. In this video, we'll examine the unsolved murder of Elizabeth Barraza,
and the many theories about the identity of the person captured on film taking her life.
A Happy Life
Elizabeth Barraza lived with her husband Sergio in Tomball, a city just outside of Houston in
Southeast Texas. In January 2019, Sergio and Elizabeth, who often went by Liz, were preparing
to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary with a trip to Orlando, Florida. Liz had a passion for
helping others, and she and Sergio were avid Star Wars fans. They were members of the 501st Legion,
an international Star Wars fan club that specializes in creating and wearing detailed,
accurate costumes from the film series. Liz was the event coordinator for her local chapter, and
she and Sergio, along with other members, would often dress in Star Wars attire and visit sick
children in local hospitals. Family and friends describe Liz as a kind and caring woman, a sweet
and thoughtful person in a happy marriage. Liz’s father, Bob Nuelle, told a local news station –
“She spent her adult life spreading love and cheer to all of those around her.”
This fact makes her violent death all the more difficult to comprehend.
A Sudden Attack
On Friday, January 25th, 2019, Liz was preparing for her upcoming anniversary trip to Orlando.
She and Sergio were scheduled to leave for the trip two days later,
on the 27th, and they were hoping to earn some extra money for the
vacation by having a garage sale. When Sergio left for work that morning,
Liz had already begun setting up for the sale in the driveway of their home on Cedar Walk Drive.
The couple exchanged “I love you’s” before Sergio pulled out of the driveway at 6:48 am.
Just four minutes after her husband’s departure, at 6:52 am, a truck pulled
up near the Barraza home and parked just past the house. The driver got out of the truck
and approached Liz on foot. Liz was startled as the person walked up the driveway toward her.
She took a step backwards, and after just eight seconds elapsed, the individual raised a gun
and shot Liz three times at point-blank range. When Liz crumpled to the ground, the shooter
stepped over her and fired one final shot, then sprinted back to the truck and fled the scene.
In the early suburban quiet, it had taken less than five minutes for Liz Barraza to be gunned
down after saying goodbye to her husband that morning. Friends, family, and investigators
would spend the next year trying to figure out who had brutally taken Liz’s life… and why.
Caught on Video
Neighbors immediately called the police after hearing the series of gunshots that had left
Liz lying in her driveway. She was rushed to the very same hospital where she and
Sergio had dressed in Star Wars attire and visited sick children. Already in critical
condition when she arrived at the hospital, Liz succumbed to her injuries the following day.
A vigil was held for Liz shortly after her death. Friends and family held lightsabers aloft outside
her home, in honor of Liz’s passion for Star Wars and her charity work with the 501st Legion.
Sergio appeared devastated by his wife’s death. He told local media outlets, -
“I don't understand how someone could do this to her.
She didn't deserve to pass away like this.
Why someone could be so monstrous
to commit an act like this to my innocent wife ... I just really can't understand.
I had to trade our fifth anniversary...
for her funeral.”
While Liz’s friends and family mourned her brutal death, investigators began searching for answers,
and in an incredible stroke of luck, they found some important evidence. Surveillance
video from neighboring homes’ security systems had captured the attack of Liz
in her driveway on the morning of the 25th. Not only had the murder been caught on video,
but the shooter’s arrival and departure had been preserved on camera as well. Unfortunately,
the footage quality was rather poor, and the cameras had been positioned far away from
where the attack took place, but the recordings still gave the investigation a strong head start.
“Quick, Calculated, and Cold-Blooded”
After investigators examined the surveillance videos, they determined that the truck the
shooter drove to and from the scene was a four-door Nissan Frontier pick-up,
an older model in a dark color. Though the license plate wasn’t visible enough to read,
security footage suggested there might have been a badge or tag number near the truck’s tailgate.
Identifying other specifics proved to be more difficult. The shooter hadn’t left anything at
the scene, and it was not clear from the footage what kind of gun had been used.
The person appeared to have long-hair, but investigators could not determine for sure
whether Liz’s attacker was a man or a woman. They seemed to be wearing a long flowing garment,
potentially a bathrobe, or even a costume or disguise of some kind, in a light color.
Surveillance footage from surrounding homes and businesses confirmed that the pick-up truck had
entered and exited Liz’s neighborhood using the same route. The truck was seen in the area the
night before Liz was shot, and on the day of the murder, the truck first entered the neighborhood
several minutes before Sergio had left the house, but the shooter didn’t approach Liz
until she was alone. Detectives determined that the shooter was likely watching the house
and waiting for Sergio to leave, a detail that suggested a planned and premeditated killing
rather than a random attack. It seemed clear that Liz had been specifically targeted by
whoever committed this crime. The suspect may have known when Sergio would leave for work. They also
might have known about the planned garage sale, and that Liz would be outside that morning.
The eight seconds that passed between the shooter approaching Liz and the actual gunshots
were of interest to investigators as well. It’s possible that Liz exchanged words with her killer
just before she was shot. Liz’s startled reaction to the shooter’s approach raised questions, too.
Did Liz take her step back from the person because she saw the gun? Was it because she recognized the
shooter as someone dangerous? Or was she startled because the shooter was a complete stranger?
Unfortunately, nobody but Liz or her killer could answer these crucial questions.
The truck was seen in the neighborhood one more time shortly after the shooting. The
footage suggested the shooter may have been confirming that Liz had been incapacitated,
or possibly checking to see if emergency services had responded to the scene yet.
Michael Ritchie, one of the Harris County homicide investigators who worked on Liz’s case,
described her death in simple, stark terms: “It was very quick,
it was very calculated, very cold-blooded of how it was done.”
Searching for Answers
Ritchie expressed that even though one person pulled the trigger,
he suspected Liz’s murder was not a one-person job. He told media outlets,
“I do believe that more than one person [was] involved in this,
and I do believe that there are some people out there that
maybe have a suspicion that somebody they know might have been involved in this.”
The murder had the classic marks of a hit-like execution, especially the point-blank gunfire,
and the final shot the killer fired after Liz had already fallen to the ground,
seemingly to make sure she wouldn’t survive. The killer immediately fled the
scene without taking anything, so robbing the Barraza’s had not been a factor in the crime.
Despite how intentional her death was, investigators could find no reason that anyone
would want to murder Liz. Her husband Sergio, who initially fell under suspicion as most spouses do
in murder cases, seemed to be nothing more than a loving, and now grieving, spouse. Following the
vigil, he held for Liz at their home, Sergio continued to cooperate with investigators,
grant interviews to the media, and publicize his wife’s case on social media, hoping for answers.
In August of 2019, eight months after Liz was killed, ABC 13 reported that investigators
were optimistic about solving the crime. They had reached out to other agencies,
including the Texas Rangers, for help with the case, and were waiting on the results
of a warrant that they hoped would lead to a break in the investigation.
“The results of that warrant, will be very critical to this investigation and most likely
expose a suspect, and who was responsible for this.”
However, no further information has been released to the public regarding that warrant.
Liz’s father has remained in close communication with the detectives
working his daughter’s case. He is hopeful that one day, Liz’s family and friends will
have answers about what happened to her on the morning of January 25th, 2019.
There is currently a $20,000,
cash reward from Crime Stoppers of Houston for information leading to the arrest of Liz’s killer.
Who Murdered Liz?
In the year since Liz’s murder, internet sleuths have taken an interest in the case,
which is especially intriguing due to the presence of video evidence.
It’s unusual for a crime to be caught in full on camera, yet remain unsolved. It is
also strange to find no clear motive for a murder, even after months of investigation.
One aspect of the crime that has been hotly debated is the gender of the killer. The security
footage is somewhat grainy, making it difficult to tell if the person who shot Liz is a man or woman,
but many online sleuths are convinced this was a female-on-female crime. The garment the killer
is wearing looks like a long robe or a dress, and the individual appears to have long hair. Many
commenters have also pointed out that the way the shooter walks is more like a woman’s gait
then a man's. If the shooter was female, it’s even more likely that Liz knew her attacker;
woman-on-woman violent crime is already rare, but it hardly ever occurs between two strangers.
The clothing itself has stirred up some questions as well.
Some believe the robe-like garment could've been a costume, leading to suggestions that someone
from Liz’s Star Wars fan group could have been involved in her death. It’s also been
suggested that the shooter was a man wearing women’s clothing as a method of disguise.
Another mystery lies in the timing of the murder. Liz was outside setting up for the garage sale,
but according to a press conference, investigators held shortly after the shooting,
Liz and Sergio hadn’t advertised the sale yet when the attack took place. They had, however, told
some friends, family, and co-workers about their garage sale plan. Could Liz’s killer be someone
from one of those close circles, someone who knew she’d likely be outside setting up that morning?
Some who've viewed the surveillance video believe Liz may have answered a phone call just before
the shooter approached. Others are sure they see the killer handing Liz a note in the footage,
but police have never released information that confirms either of these theories.
What many armchair detectives agree on is the intentional nature of the murder.
Whoever was driving that truck likely timed their attack, waiting for Liz to be alone and
defenseless outside of her home. They believe this was far from a random killing; this shooting was
efficient, ruthless, and probably personal. Could someone close to Liz have hired a professional
to kill her? The execution-style of the shooting supports this theory, but some commenters insist,
a seasoned killer would have been more careful about being caught on security cameras.
Although investigators haven’t seemed to focus on Sergio Barraza as a suspect,
many who follow the case have still wondered if a love triangle could be the source of this
violence. Could Liz have been having an affair, causing a jealous wife to snap?
Or could Sergio have been unfaithful, leading to the same devastating outcome?
Finally, a few sleuths have wondered if Liz’s job as a data analyst could have had any connection
to her murder. She worked for a corporation providing data analysis services to the oil
and gas industry. Since clients in this industry invest such large sums of money - is it possible
Liz discovered something inappropriate or illegal in the course of her work?
Something that a powerful entity would do anything to cover-up?
The case of Elizabeth’s Barraza’s murder has spawned so many theories and questions,
but unfortunately, no definitive answers have yet to be found for the loved ones
she left behind. The case remains open with the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.
What do you think about the unsolved murder of Elizabeth Barraza? Was she gunned down by
a hired hitman (or woman) who waited for the perfect time to strike? Was she the victim of
an inexplicable random shooting? Or did someone in her life, undetected by friends or family,
want to harm her? Comment below with your reactions and theories regarding Liz’s case.