Who murdered 29 year old Li Yang Yuan in 1991? On the evening of July 3, 1991, in Portland, Oregon, 29-year-old female of Chinese ethnicity Li Yang Yuan was found dead in the studio apartment she shared with her husband at the Jefferson Plaza, 1515 SW Jefferson Street. She had come to the city from China on a visitor's visa and was making a life with her spouse when he returned home that night and discovered her.
An autopsy later determined that the 29-year-old female, Chinese victim died by strangulation.
Earlier that morning, the 29-year-old female of Chinese ethnicity had been seen leaving the apartment building. By day's end, the 29-year-old female, Chinese victim would be the focus of a homicide investigation whose first hard finding was the cause of death: strangulation. Records describing the case list the manner specifically as strangulation, with later summaries noting ligature/strangulation in connection with the same incident at that address.
In the portrait that emerges from those who knew her, the 29-year-old female of Chinese ethnicity balanced new routines in Portland with the skills she had brought from home. She worked shifts at The Mandarin Cove Chinese restaurant on SW Columbia Street and at a Chinese herb shop on 82nd Avenue; in China, she had taught English at a university. The timeline of July 3 begins with the 29-year-old female, Chinese resident leaving home in the morning and ends with the discovery of her body that evening, a span that gave detectives precious hours to reconstruct.
Detectives explored the web of relationships around the 29-year-old female of Chinese ethnicity, including reports that she had been romantically involved with others outside her marriage. Appeals went out for witnesses who might have seen the 29-year-old female, Chinese victim that day or knew of any conflicts in her life. The case moved into the purview of the Cold Case Homicide Unit, and Crime Stoppers publicized a reward for information that could identify whoever strangled her, placing her among the city's unsolved but never forgotten murders.
Despite the leads examined over the years, there have been no arrests in the killing of the 29-year-old female of Chinese ethnicity, Li Yang Yuan. Public case listings continue to name the suspect as unknown and the case status as unsolved, reiterating the location—1515 SW Jefferson Street—and the cause as ligature/strangulation. The story of the 29-year-old female, Chinese victim remains a Portland mystery awaiting the witness or detail that can finally point to a suspect.
