OXNARD : 2 Stabbed in Fight on Night of Cruising

A night of cruising in a limousine through the La Colonia section of east Oxnard ended abruptly early Wednesday for two men who were stabbed in a pre-dawn knife fight.

Miller L. Aupiu, 25, of Oxnard remained in critical condition at St. John’s Regional Medical Center on Wednesday evening, a hospital spokeswoman said. Therman E. Beard, 28, of Port Hueneme was treated for a knife wound at the hospital and released, the spokeswoman said.

According to a 20-year-old woman who was a passenger in the limousine, Aupiu and Beard were among at least seven men who were picked up by the limousine’s owner during the evening, Oxnard Police Sgt. Denny Phillips said.

The group drove around drinking beer, stopping at an area market at least twice to buy more alcohol, the woman told police. During the last stop just after midnight, the two men became involved in a fight in the market parking lot at First Street and Rose Avenue, with Aupiu sustaining several stab wounds to his chest and neck, Phillips said.

A police search of the fight scene turned rock cocaine, Phillips said. Investigators do not know if the cocaine was related to the fight, “but you usually don’t find cocaine lying around,” Oxnard Police Detective Tim Combs said.