'This could have been anyone': Family pleads for justice two years after Bradenton mother killed

BRADENTON, Fla. - Two years after Yolanda Baxcajay-Flores was killed outside her Bradenton home, detectives are urging witnesses to come forward with information about the shooting on Nov. 12, 2024.

Bradenton police homicide investigation

What we know:

At 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 12, 2024, Baxcajay-Flores had just returned from buying groceries and was pulling into her driveway in the 2100 block of 15th Avenue East, according to the Bradenton Police Department. Gunfire erupted several homes away, with over 30 rounds fired from multiple weapons.

Surveillance video from the area captured the suspects, according to police. Two minutes earlier, at 7:28 p.m., a sedan parked near the intersection of 14th Avenue East and 21st Street East.
The driver stayed inside the car while three people got out and ran toward 15th Avenue East, police said. Within seconds, the suspects opened fire, ran back to the car and left the scene.

Bradenton Police Homicide Detective Brian Sands said Baxcajay-Flores was an innocent bystander caught in the crossfire of a retaliatory shooting. She was not the intended target.

Unsolved shooting details

What we don't know:

Detectives have identified several persons of interest, according to police, but they have not publicly released their names. Investigators have also not made any arrests in the case.

Baxcajay-Flores family seeks justice

What they're saying:

Baxcajay-Flores left behind four children who have spent the past two years marking birthdays and milestones without her. Her daughter, Joanna Rodriguez, said she remembers her mother’s warm smile and drive to provide for her family.

"In my head, she’s still at home doing what she’s doing," Rodriguez said. "All she wanted to do was come home to her kids and continue working."

Rodriguez said anniversaries bring back the pain of losing her mother. "There’s days like this where we are forced to remember such a cruel reality and just remembering that she is actually gone," she said.

She called on anyone with information to help her family find closure. "This could have been anyone. All we are looking for is justice. If it was anyone else’s mother in their position, they would want the justice we want too," Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez added, "Justice will be had whether it’s in this life or the next one. That’s the only thing that brings me peace. If anything, I just hope that their conscious just really haunts them."

Sands said the case weighs heavily on investigators because Baxcajay-Flores had no connection to the dispute. "It hurts more at home when you know it’s an innocent person that had nothing to do with this altercation whatsoever. It hurts and is something that will be in the back of my mind till this gets solved," he said.

He emphasized that detectives are committed to finding those responsible. "We have names that we are looking at, it’s going to come to the public or to someone involved possible to provide the information needed to solve this case. We are not going to stop. We will not stop looking into this murder until it’s solved," Sands said.

Manatee County reward information

What you can do:

An $8,000 reward is being offered for tips that lead to an arrest in the case, according to police. The total includes $3,000 from CrimeStoppers of Manatee County, Inc. and $5,000 from the Gold Star Club of Manatee County.

Tipsters can remain anonymous and still qualify for the reward by submitting information here.

Bradenton