PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – After a 2020 Northeast Portland shooting left one woman dead and a man injured, authorities continue to ask for the public’s help in solving the case.
On June 18, 2020, just before 11:50 p.m., Portland police responded to Northeast Killingsworth Street after a report of shots fired in the area, officials said. On the scene, officers said they found a man and a woman suffering from gunshot wounds.
The Portland Police Bureau noted the man was taken to a hospital with a non-life-threatening injury. Officials said 23-year-old Evelin Navarro Barajas died at the scene.
Authorities determined her death was a result of homicidal violence by gunshot wound.
During a 2021 press conference held by Barajas’ family and the lead detective on the case, PPB Detective Ryan Foote said evidence points to the homicide being a random act of gang-motivated violence — clarifying Evelin herself had no association with any gangs.
“Evelin was more than a number or a statistic, she was more than a headline or a talking point — Evelin was a young woman with a lot of life left to live,” Foote said during the press conference. “As homicide detectives, we want to solve each and every one of our cases. We want to get it right, the victims and their families deserve that. Yet we’re stuck in the harsh reality of a time where the number of homicides has quadrupled. A place where tasks outpace our time.”
Foote added, “we ask that Evelin’s case not be forgotten and that people within the community come forward so Evelin and her family can have the justice and the closure they deserve.”
Crime Stoppers of Oregon offers cash rewards of up to $2,500 cash for information, reported to Crime Stoppers, that leads to an arrest in any unsolved felony crime and tipsters can remain anonymous.