In the pre-dawn hours of January 14, 2019, 21-year-old Emilio M. Elizondo was found on the sidewalk in front of his home on Goethals Drive in Richland, Washington after neighbors were awakened by gunfire. He was pronounced dead at the scene from a fatal gunshot wound to the head, the Benton County Coroner’s Office confirmed. Numerous bullet casings were located in the street near his body.

Elizondo had lived in the duplex with his longtime girlfriend and their two young children for about five months. Family described him as a caring, helpful father. Law enforcement records noted an affiliation with the Florencia 13 gang and that he faced charges at the time for allegedly pointing a handgun at people in another vehicle; his past included a juvenile record and testimony in a 2014 murder trial in which he admitted selling a gun later used in a teenager’s killing.

Richland police treated the shooting as targeted and said there was no broader threat, but released no information about suspects or motive. The city’s first homicide in five years was processed as an active investigation; investigators closed surrounding streets and processed the scene, yet no arrests were announced in the days and weeks that followed. As of mid-2024 the investigation remains open with no publicly identified suspects and no arrests. Anyone with information about Emilio or the shooting is asked to come forward.