Suspect in Fatal Stabbing Arrested

A parolee suspected of stabbing a woman to death in the Colonia neighborhood was arrested Tuesday, authorities said.

Cruz Belman Alcantar was taken into custody for an alleged parole violation about 5:30 a.m. as he walked toward his truck parked near his residence. The area is a few blocks from the Colonia Road sidewalk where the victim was found.

Detectives were tipped to the vehicle’s make and model by witnesses who saw Alcantar and the victim leave a local restaurant together late Sunday or early Monday, said Oxnard Police Sgt. Lee Wilcox.

Also Tuesday, authorities released the name of the victim. She is Anna Maria Ramirez Mendez, a 41-year-old mother of four who rented a room in Colonia and spent her days baby-sitting her grandchildren, Wilcox said.

Mendez was identified by her sister and daughter, both of whom live in Oxnard, authorities said.

Her other grown children live in Mexico.

Mendez was found about 5 a.m. Monday by a resident who was walking on Colonia Road.

The large pool of blood led authorities to conclude that Mendez was killed where she was found.

Her throat had been slashed and there were stab wounds to her chest, authorities said, and she was clothed in only a shirt or jacket.

The knife believed to have been used in the killing was found near the body.

Deputy county coroner Armando Chavez said tests were being run on Mendez to determine whether she had been sexually assaulted.

Alcantar was deported to Mexico last July after serving half of an eight-year prison sentence for repeated sexual abuse of a child under 14, said Jim Henson of the state Department of Corrections.

That crime occurred in Ventura County, Henson said.

Over the years, Alcantar has used aliases and given authorities several dates of birth, but he is believed to be 24 or 29.

He was being held without bail Tuesday night on suspicion of violating parole.

Wilcox said it could be several days before charges are filed in the murder case.

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