Daniela Pérez, a 24-year-old woman, was reported missing, along with her car, last week but police later discovered her vehicle in a school parking lot in Ontario, Oregon, last Tuesday night.
Inside the car, officers found Daniela dead under circumstances that strongly suggested a criminal homicide, according to the Malheur County District Attorney’s Office.
The person identified as the “priority person of interest,” seen leaving the parking lot with a pink backpack on surveillance footage, was later spotted playing video poker in additional surveillance footage near the scene.
By the following evening, law enforcement had obtained an arrest warrant for this individual, Connor Fry, whose cell phone had been tracked to a local shed.
As local law enforcement and the Oregon State Police SWAT team surrounded the area, officers witnessed Fry emerging from the shed and taking cover in dense vegetation nearby, as reported in a subsequent press release by the district attorney’s office. Shortly after, officers heard a single muffled gunshot.
The district attorney’s office clarified that no member of law enforcement had discharged a weapon. Given the uncertainty of any remaining threats, officers used pepper spray to clear the area. When Fry failed to emerge from the bushes, they utilized non-lethal bullets in an attempt to coax him out of the vegetation.
Fry remained motionless, prompting officers to approach his body. They secured his wrists and checked for vital signs, determining that he had no signs of life and appeared to have died from a self-inflicted shotgun wound. The district attorney’s office also noted that Fry had additional rounds of ammunition in his clothing.
According to CBS 2, law enforcement does not believe that Fry was aware of the SWAT team’s proximity at the time of his death.
This tragic incident led to the loss of two lives, despite the fact that both individuals reportedly did not know each other. The case may have stemmed from a burglary gone awry, as reported by CBS 2.
A GoFundMe campaign has been established to raise funds for Daniela Pérez’s family to bring her body to Mexico for burial.
Described as a person of love, light, and compassion, Daniela, known as “Dani” to her friends, is remembered for her contagious laughter that could brighten anyone’s day and her ever-illuminating smile that lit up any room.
Friends and family paid tribute to her “beautiful bright soul” in both English and Spanish, acknowledging her as a blessing to everyone. Within the first day of the campaign, over $21,000 had been raised.
