Cynthia Barringer, 32, was found inside an apartment in the 2300 block of Green Street SE in Southeast Washington, D.C., after firefighters responded to a smoke report on the afternoon of October 31, 2021. Fire crews located and extinguished a blaze in the unit and discovered Barringer; an autopsy on November 1, 2021, determined she had been fatally shot, and her death was ruled a homicide.

Investigators described the killing as domestic in nature. The probe identified a suspect and on December 27, 2021, members of the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force arrested 30-year-old Karon Brown of Northeast, D.C., charging him with second-degree murder while armed. Authorities say an argument preceded the shooting; Brown allegedly shot Barringer in the head with a .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol, then set fire to the bedroom before fleeing. Surveillance footage reportedly shows him leaving the building and later leaving a bloody t-shirt and the weapon at a family member’s home; DNA testing linked those items to him and to the victim.

Does anyone have information about Cynthia’s life in Southeast D.C. or the days leading up to October 31, 2021?