Graffiti Spree Puzzles Street’s Merchants : Oxnard: The vandals strike 46 residences and businesses along a major boulevard. Damage is estimated at $15,000 to $20,000.

David Pichon came to work Monday, after a weekend wedding in Ojai, not just to the sounds of congratulations but to the signs of vandalism.

Pichon, 27, owns Custom Car Sounds, his second auto-sound store in Ventura County and one of the newest businesses on Oxnard Boulevard. His store was one of 46 residences and businesses hit last weekend by vandals who left a spray-painted trail up and down the boulevard, from Wooley Avenue to Vineyard Road.

Police had no clues as to who was responsible for the graffiti, which will cost $15,000 to $20,000 to remove.

“This is something new,” said police spokesman David Keith. “It does not match any gang moniker.”

While employees armed with buckets of soapy water and squeegees were removing the vandals’ work from Pichon’s store Wednesday, the owner of El Dorado Mexican Foods, two blocks away, was counting her losses.

Outside the family-run restaurant, the wall bore the moniker of the weekend taggers. Inside, owner Socorro Velasquez, 66, said two neighboring businesses that she owns also were hit.

“It will cost $200 to repair the vandalism,” said Olivia Palacio, 31, manager of the restaurant. “We’ve never had this happen before.”

Other merchants along Oxnard Boulevard were surprised by the attack on their establishments.

“This is the first time anything like this has happened to me,” said Carlos Perezrulfo, 37, managing partner of El Pollo Norteno, whose yellow-brick storefront displayed the work of the taggers.

“We will have to repaint the whole wall, and I imagine that it could cost $400,” he said.

The graffiti, most of it the initials CR, varied in size from inches high to more than four feet, and few buildings were spared by the vandals, who even climbed up to paint across a Vons supermarket billboard.

Jim Faulconer, community services director for the city of Oxnard, said the city is cleaning up the vacant buildings and utility boxes.

He said he has seen a steady increase in graffiti in the Oxnard area, but he added that it is not isolated to any particular area.

Mario Guerrero, 22, who works for his father at his S & L Styling hair salon, questioned the reasons behind the act.

“I just don’t see why anybody would want to do this,” Guerrero said. “It is an unbelievable waste of time.”

While he is used to seeing graffiti in the area, Guerrero cannot remember anything like this.

“I grew up here and never saw this before. I mean, graffiti is pretty common, but not like this,” said Guerrero. “Whoever did this has everybody” angry, he said.

Guerrero says he will wait until the weekend to paint over the graffiti on his father’s storefront.

Although police and victims have few hard clues about who the vandal or vandals were, one clerk has a theory about the motive.

“There used to be a cruise night along Saviers Road, but then it got closed down about three weeks ago,” said Manny Aguilera, 21, manager of Custom Car Sounds. “That is what I think.”