In the early morning hours of December 13, 2019, the life of 20-year-old Hispanic male Luis Enrique Acosta was tragically cut short in Yakima, Washington. His death, caused by gunshot wounds, is being investigated by the Yakima Police Department as a homicide.
The chain of events began at 1:39 a.m. when police responded to a report of shots fired in the 400 block of North 5th Avenue. At the scene, officers discovered several shell casings, but no victim was found.
It wasn't until nearly two hours later, at 3:48 a.m., that a pedestrian in the same area made a grim discovery. Under a tree by the sidewalk lay the body of Luis Acosta, who was found unresponsive and face down with gunshot wounds to his torso.
In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, the Yakima Police Department began their investigation, stating that the incident did not appear to be gang-related. A week after the discovery of Acosta's body, on December 20, 2019, police confirmed that they were still investigating the shooting and that no arrests had been made.
Years later, the case remains without a resolution. In an effort to generate new leads in unsolved homicides, the Yakima Police Department created an interactive map in June 2021, which included the case of Luis Acosta. This inclusion among other cold cases highlights that, despite the passage of time, no suspects have been publicly identified or taken into custody for his death. The investigation into the murder of Luis Enrique Acosta is ongoing, and authorities continue to seek information that may lead to an arrest.
