In the early days of January 2018, the life of 49-year-old Tracy Sehmel, a male resident of Roy, Washington, came to a tragic and violent end. His body was discovered on the afternoon of January 4th in the trunk of his own silver Saturn sedan at a towing yard in Lakewood. The vehicle had been impounded the previous day from the vicinity of 97th Street and Sheridan Avenue in Tacoma. The grim discovery launched a homicide investigation by the Pierce County Sheriff's Department.
An autopsy would later reveal that Sehmel had died from multiple gunshot wounds.
At the time of his death, no one had reported Tracy Sehmel missing. However, a concerned loved one had contacted Auburn police when he failed to show up for an appointment. Investigators learned that Sehmel had a criminal history, including a manslaughter conviction from 1991. Despite his past, his family reported that he had been making a concerted effort to turn his life around since his release from prison in February of 2017. He had found steady work in construction and was reconnecting with his family, who were proud of the positive changes he had made.
The investigation into who was responsible for Tracy Sehmel's death has unfortunately grown cold over the years. In the initial stages of the investigation, detectives worked to piece together his final movements and determine how long he had been in the trunk of his car before being found. Despite their efforts, no suspects were publicly identified in the weeks and months that followed his death. As time passed, the case was added to the list of unsolved homicides in Pierce County. Law enforcement has periodically asked for the public's assistance, hoping that someone with information will come forward to provide the crucial lead needed to bring his killer or killers to justice. To this day, no arrests have been made, and the case remains an open and unsolved homicide.
