As September fades, two Hillsboro cold cases remain frozen in time — but law enforcement hopes to reignite the search for answers in mysteries that have lingered for decades.
In honor of National Cold Case Month, the Hillsboro Police Department is seeking new information on two unsolved deaths that both occurred in late September, years apart.
Gerardo Pizano-Arteaga
On Sept. 24, 2007, 45-year-old Gerardo Pizano-Arteaga was found injured behind Joe’s Pastime Tavern near East Main Street and Fourth Avenue in Hillsboro.
Known to friends as “Jerry,” Pizano-Arteaga died later that day from his injuries, with an autopsy revealing that his head had been crushed by extreme force — more than could be inflicted in a fistfight or with a blunt object.
At the time, police were uncertain whether the death was accidental. Some speculated that an intoxicated driver may have run him over while leaving the parking lot, The Oregonian reported in 2008 .
When Pizano-Arteaga was found, his core body temperature had dropped to 86 degrees, indicating that he had been injured hours earlier and was unable to generate enough heat to maintain a normal body temperature.