Elsy Puente was 25 when she was shot inside her south Wichita home on the evening of July 16, 2019. Police responded about 8:30 p.m. to a residence in the 3100 block of South Elizabeth and found Puente with a fatal gunshot wound to her upper body. She was taken to a local hospital and later died. Four young children, ages 2, 3, 5, and 8, were in the home at the time and were unharmed; they are now being cared for by family members.

Officers arrested Elsy’s 29-year-old boyfriend, Victor Manuel Castro, at the scene. Authorities said the shooting followed a domestic violence disturbance and reported both adults had been drinking that day. One child told investigators the couple had been arguing over text messages. Castro told police he tried to grab a gun Elsy was waving and that it discharged accidentally, injuring his finger.

The case went to a four-day jury trial in May 2022; prosecutors said the shooting was unintentional but reckless. Castro was acquitted of second-degree murder and pleaded guilty to criminal possession of a weapon by a convicted felon. Did anyone in Wichita know Elsy or her family and have information about what happened that night?