Woman Found Slain in La Colonia

The body of a woman, discovered early Monday with her throat slashed and stab wounds in her chest, was found outside a home in the Colonia section of the city.

Oxnard police identified the partially clothed Latina’s body through fingerprints but did not release her identity, pending notification of her family. She was described as being of medium height and weight, in her 30s to early 40s and with dark hair and eyes.

Shortly after 5 a.m., a resident along the 900 block of Colonia Road discovered the body lying in a pool of blood, police said.

Neighbors on the block stood outside their homes to watch detectives. The body lay sprawled on a small patch of sidewalk, near a large white van parked in the street.

Though investigators do not believe the van was associated with the slaying, they confiscated it in hopes that the killer touched it, leaving behind fingerprints.

Residents said they had heard no screams or sounds of a struggle and were unaware of the slaying until police arrived asking questions.

“Poor lady,” said neighbor Johnny Alvarez, 40, as he looked at the body beyond the yellow crime-scene tape. “Before, it was dangerous around here. But not anymore. I’ve never seen anything like this.”

The stabbing marks the second homicide in Oxnard this year.

In January, Hilda Valeriano, 34, was fatally shot by her estranged husband shortly after filing a restraining order against him. Jose Valeriano, 38, died after he then turned the gun on himself, firing two shots into his chest.

Overall, the city’s murder rate has dropped by two-thirds during the last decade.

In 1992, when gang activity in the small Colonia neighborhood was at its highest, Oxnard logged 1,623 violent crimes, including 13 homicides. Last year, 1,596 violent crimes were recorded, four of them homicides.

Residents said they feel safer strolling the streets at night, but some added that the slaying stirred old fears.

“I have two daughters who walk down that sidewalk on their way home from work and school every day,” said Carmen Agraz. “I can’t help but be a little scared.”

Cecilia Madrid, who was visiting a sister who lives across the street from the crime scene, agreed: “It’s a little scary when it’s this close to home.”

Several neighbors later built a small memorial of flowers and cards at the spot where faint blood stains marked the sidewalk. Throughout the day, others walked by and stood, heads bowed, to honor the slain woman who no one seemed to know.

“We just want to pay our respects,” said one woman, who asked not to be identified. “We didn’t know her, but we can still respect what was her life.”

*

Times staff photographer Steve Osman contributed to this story.