In the early morning hours of October 14, 2016, a burst of gunfire shattered the quiet of a Tacoma, Washington neighborhood, leaving two men dead in its wake. One of the victims was 45-year-old Voravangso Phana, a male resident of the home where the violence erupted. The shooting, which occurred in the 3600 block of Portland Avenue East, also claimed the life of his friend, 61-year-old Terry Northcutt.
Neighbors were startled by the sound of gunshots around 1 a.m.
and quickly dialed 911 to report the disturbance. When police arrived at the scene, they discovered both Phana and Northcutt outside the residence, suffering from fatal gunshot wounds. Despite the prompt response, the perpetrator or perpetrators had already vanished, leaving investigators with a complex and troubling crime scene. Detectives were left to piece together the events that led to the brutal end of two lives.
In the immediate aftermath of the double homicide, the Tacoma Police Department appealed to the public for assistance, hoping that a crucial witness or a vital piece of information would surface. Investigators worked to uncover a motive for the killings, but the reasons behind the targeted attack remained elusive. They explored various leads and looked into the backgrounds of both victims, searching for any potential conflicts or connections that could shed light on their violent deaths. At the time, police stated that they did not believe it was a random drive-by shooting.
Despite the passage of time and the ongoing efforts of law enforcement, the case of Voravangso Phana and Terry Northcutt's murders has grown cold. To this day, no suspects have been publicly identified, and no arrests have been made in connection with the double homicide. The case is now listed among the unsolved homicides in Pierce County, a painful reminder of a violent night that left a community shaken and two families grieving. The circumstances surrounding their deaths remain a mystery, and the individuals responsible for this act of violence have yet to be brought to justice.
