Investigators have concluded the March 30th, 2023, investigation regarding the death of Kali Roque (38) and Juan “Braulio” Roque De Le Jeuerta (37), or Juan Roque. After a thorough review of the evidence, the Marion County District Attorney’s Office and Marion County Sheriff’s Office have determined that it appears Juan Roque is solely responsible for the death of his wife, Kali Roque. Juan Roque then died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
On March 30, 2023, Marion County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to 4641 Carolina Ave NE, Salem, Oregon. Kali Roque’s sister-in-law, Carrie Cheplic, called 911 after finding the Roques deceased in the guest bedroom of their residence.
On March 29, 2023, Mrs. Cheplic hosted a sleepover with her niece, the oldest of the Roques’ two children. When Kali Roque did not respond to cell phone text messages in the early morning of the 30th and then again later that same morning, Mrs. Cheplic brought her niece back to the Roque’s home on Columbia Avenue. No one answered the door, so Mrs. Cheplic disarmed the home’s security alarm and entered the residence.
She found the Roques’ youngest child sleeping and uninjured. She changed the child’s diaper and then found Kali and Juan Roque in the guest bedroom with apparent gunshot injuries. She called 911.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office responded and cleared the home. All entrances to the residence were locked and secure. There were no signs of forced entry nor did any valuables appear missing nor disturbed.
Both bodies were in the residence’s guest bedroom. The bed was pressed against the southwest corner of the bedroom wall. Kali Roques’ body was positioned on her left side in a fetal position facing northwards, away from the wall. Juan Roque was in a supine position on the outside edge of the bed. His right elbow was on Kali Roque, however his arm was draped over his chest with his right hand on his left side. Next to his right hand and resting on his left arm was a Taurus G2C 9mm handgun. The weapon held 11 out of 13 maximum cartridges. Two expelled empty shell casings were located at the scene.
Kali Roque had a gunshot injury to her right temple. The trajectory of the bullet was almost straight downwards through the pillow and continued into the mattress below. A fired bullet was later recovered in the mattress foam beneath her injury.
Juan Roque also had a gunshot injury to his right temple. A defect in the west wall on the bedroom (near his head) appeared to investigators to be consistent with a bullet graze. The second bullet was not recovered.
Law enforcement searched the residence. They located and reviewed personal items belonging to Kali Roque, including a journal. They were also able to access Kali Roque’s cell phone and examined its contents. No information collected from those two items suggested that Kali Roque was suicidal. Individuals close to the family indicated that Kali Roque had been depressed since the death of her mother; however, Kali Roque’s medical records were obtained and contained low Columbia Suicide Risk and PHQ9 scores, indicating a low or mild risk of suicidality.
Law enforcement located and seized two cell phones (one being a work cell phone) presumably belonging to Juan Roque, but they were unable to bypass the security codes to access the data. However, one cell phone displayed a loud sound notification from 2210 hours on March 29, 2023, which law enforcement presumes was a gunshot.
Law enforcement interviewed neighbors who stated that they didn’t observe anything suspicious the day before the event, nor did anyone hear any gunshots throughout the evening. Overall, the family was described as normal, and no neighbors expressed any concerns.
Law enforcement interviewed a friend of Juan Roque who indicated that he had spoken with Juan Roque the day before his death. During that conversation, Juan Roque had stated that Kali Roque was going through a lot since the death of her mother, that their marriage was ending, and that he (Juan Roque) had been struggling with his mental health. While the specific mental health issues weren’t discussed, Juan Roque did say that he had called a mental health help line who encouraged Juan Roque to place his firearms with a friend to remove them from the residence. Juan Roque gave this friend’s name to the hotline as a person who could help secure those firearms.
Later, the mental health line followed up with Juan Roque’s friend who did, in fact, assist Juan Roque in removing the guns from the house. When he did so, he asked Juan Roque about a specific Taurus handgun that was not among the guns he received from Juan Roque. He knew that Juan Roque possessed that specific firearm from the times that they had been shooting together. Juan Roque indicated that he sold the Taurus to purchase a Glock 19 and stated that he no longer possessed the Taurus.
The Oregon State Medical Examiner’s Office declined to perform an autopsy on the bodies. Therefore, no autopsy information is available. Forensic analysis for the Taurus firearm recovered from the scene has not concluded. Toxicology reports from both deceased individuals remain pending with Oregon State Police Forensic Laboratory. The Taurus was legally registered to Juan Roque.
In conclusion, investigators have determined that Juan Roque shot Kali Roque and then died from a self-inflicted gunshot injury.
Investigators did not locate any information connecting Kali Roque’s death to the death of her mother, Theresa Hethorn, who is the victim in Polk County Circuit Court Case 23CR17443. The Defendant in that case is Kali Roque’s brother, Robin Avery Hethorn. Any allegation that the deaths were connected is unsubstantiated in the investigation.
The Roque children are together with family.
Questions can be sent to Marion County Deputy District Attorney Brendan Murphy at (503) 588-5222 and BPMurphy@co.marion.or.us.