Gunman who killed Puyallup barbershop owner has not been identified. Here’s what we know

Two months after a Puyallup barber was killed, police have not identified a suspect.

Jose Velez, 43, owned JQ’s Barber Shop at 112 E. Stewart Ave. Police said he was cutting a child’s hair the evening of Nov. 30 when a gunman walked into the shop, went directly to the barbershop owner and opened fire.

Carmen Robles, one of Velez’s sisters, said she didn’t get a timeline as to when she and her family should expect an update from the police. She doesn’t know why someone would hurt her brother, she said.

“I have no update on what’s going on,” Robles said.

Puyallup police Capt. Don Bourbon said surveillance cameras near the barbershop weren’t working, so there was no video evidence to be found. Investigators sent items to a crime laboratory to be analyzed. The department is waiting on those results, he said.

Asked if investigators have a sense why someone would hurt Velez, Bourbon said there are multiple leads that detectives are following up on.

The crime lab didn’t give a timeline to the police department as to when they can expect the results, Bourbon said. The lab is “backlogged” with homicides and other cases from the past year, he said.

“Once (detectives) get those back then they’ll continue to follow up on those leads and hopefully those leads can turn into something more,” Bourbon said.

Asked if detectives think someone disabled the surveillance cameras as part of the crime, what items were sent to the laboratory and if they still think the attack was targeted, Bourbon said they “did not have anything further to add at this time.”

The police department told The News Tribune in December they believe the shooting was targeted. The department said the gunman passed by other people upon entering the shop and walked to a specific booth to shoot the barbershop owner.

“We recognize we have an armed gunman out there, but it doesn’t appear that the attack was random,” Capt. Ryan Portmann told The News Tribune in December.

Those who knew Velez placed flowers and a portrait of him in front of the shop in early December.

Police have said the suspect is 5-foot-8 and wore all-black clothing. Anyone with tips can reach the police at 253-770-3343 or tips@puyallupwa.gov.

Angelica Relente

The News Tribune

253-274-7323

Angelica Relente covers topics that affect communities in East Pierce County. She started as a news intern in June 2021 after graduating from Washington State University. She is also a member of Seattle’s Asian American Journalists Association. She was born in the Philippines and spent the rest of her childhood in Hawaii.