Sophia Renken, 74, was found shot to death in her Gardnerville, Nevada home during a welfare check on January 13, 2019. Investigators determined her death occurred sometime between the afternoon of January 12 and the early afternoon of January 13. Renken was known in the community for her love of horses and vintage cars.

Her killing came amid a string of violent home deaths in the area that month, including the January 10 death of 56-year-old Connie Koontz and the January 16 deaths of Gerald and Sharon David in Washoe Valley. The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office initially had few leads, no suspect description and no clear motive, which heightened fear across the close-knit town.

A stolen Apple Watch taken from Koontz and subsequent pawn-shop finds helped focus investigators on a family in Carson City; law enforcement placed a man under surveillance and later arrested him. Does anyone in Gardnerville recall seeing anything suspicious around Renken’s home on January 12 or 13?