On the evening of June 16, 2018, just days before she was set to graduate from high school, 18-year-old Karyme Barreto Sabalza was lured to Salt Air Vista Park in Kent, Washington, by her boyfriend. In a secluded area of the park, the young female was strangled and shot once in the head. A witness later found her still alive on a trail, but her injuries were too severe, and she did not survive.
Karyme had been preparing to start nursing school on a scholarship and was looking forward to a future that was tragically cut short.
The investigation quickly focused on her 19-year-old boyfriend, Giovanni Herrin. In the weeks leading up to her murder, Karyme had sent messages to friends expressing a growing fear for her life. She confided that Herrin had accessed her bank account and warned her to "better watch out." In a chilling premonition, she told a friend that if anything ever happened to her, they should "Report it and say it was Gio." After killing Karyme, Herrin stole her car, purse, and cellphone. He then drove her vehicle to a nearby ATM, where he used her bank card to withdraw money, which he later used to buy marijuana.
Giovanni Herrin was arrested on June 19, 2018, following a police pursuit. When questioned by detectives, he initially tried to deflect blame, first accusing another man of the crime and then attempting to pin the murder on his own brother. While in custody on July 4, 2018, Herrin complained of feeling unwell and was taken to Harborview Medical Center. Faking his illness as part of an escape plan, he ran from the corrections officers guarding him and attempted to carjack a vehicle. A corrections officer pursued him and shot him, resulting in non-life-threatening injuries.
After a lengthy legal process that included three separate trials and two jury convictions, Giovanni Herrin was ultimately found guilty of first-degree murder with a firearm enhancement and second-degree escape. On September 6, 2023, he was sentenced to 37 years in prison for the murder of Karyme Barreto Sabalza.
