In an act of compassion that ended in tragedy, Janet Oyuga, a 37-year-old Black woman, was killed on December 19, 2019, in Federal Way, Washington. She and her sister, Angela Atieno, had recently entered into a lease-to-buy agreement for a home that had gone into foreclosure. The previous owner, 85-year-old Beverly Lorraine Jenne, was permitted by the sisters to continue living in the house to prevent her from becoming homeless while she searched for alternative housing.
This
arrangement, however, grew tense as Jenne developed a significant animosity towards Janet, fearing she would be evicted. In the early morning hours, this fear erupted into violence when Jenne shot Janet multiple times, resulting in her death. Not stopping there, Jenne then waited for Angela to return home from work. As Angela walked up the stairs, she was shot in the back. Despite her injuries, Angela survived the attack.
Investigators discovered a handwritten note in Jenne's car that detailed her distress over the possibility of being evicted and her feelings towards Janet. The note, which was signed and dated the night before the shooting, stated that Janet had "drove me to this." Following the incident, police found a revolver with spent cartridges on Jenne's bed.
Beverly Lorraine Jenne was arrested and subsequently charged with premeditated first-degree murder for the death of Janet Oyuga and first-degree assault for the shooting of Angela Atieno. Her bail was set at $1 million. Jenne later pleaded not guilty to the charges. In a strange turn of events, about a week and a half after the murder, the house where the shooting occurred was destroyed in a fire, the cause of which was not immediately determined. The community offered its support to the grieving family, raising money to help send Janet's body back to her native Kenya for burial.
