Maria Barrios Ventura, 20, was killed in the early morning hours of July 19, 2026, when a bullet fired from the street entered her South Los Angeles home and struck her in the head. She was asleep in the 400 block of West 103rd Street in the Vermont Vista neighborhood beside her boyfriend, Omar Misael, and their one-year-old daughter; neither the boyfriend nor the child were physically injured. The Los Angeles County medical examiner ruled the death a homicide caused by a gunshot wound to the head.

At least eight shots were fired from the street, and several struck the exterior of the house. Detectives from LAPD’s South Bureau homicide unit opened an investigation to determine whether the shooting was random or whether Maria was the intended target. As of late July 2026, no suspects had been identified and no arrests had been made. Her family, most of whom live in Guatemala, has been left planning a funeral and arranging care for the child; a GoFundMe was created to help with expenses.

Did anyone in the Vermont Vista area on July 19 hear or see anything that could help investigators?