Suspect Held in Fatal Stabbing of Oxnard Resident

Police on Friday arrested a 21-year-old Oxnard resident in connection with the stabbing death of a man in front of his home Thursday afternoon.

Jose David Corral was being held in Ventura County Jail on suspicion of murder in the death of Joshua Mumford, 21, of Oxnard. Corral’s arrest came after a 22-hour investigation by Oxnard Police Department detectives and the city’s Violent Crimes Task Force, said Assistant Chief Chuck Hookstra.

The slaying is the city’s 13th this year, compared with 12 homicides in all of 2002. Police have increased patrols and stepped up response time to violent incidents.

“We devoted a lot of resources to this [crime] right off the bat,” Hookstra said. “Everyone worked straight through 22 hours, and that’s what brought this to fruition so fast. We’ve always put out a lot of resources, but this being the 13th homicide of the year, we just poured everything we could into it.”

Authorities say Mumford was standing on the sidewalk in front of his home on the 400 block of Teakwood Street when he was approached by Corral. The two got into an argument that escalated into a fight, during which Mumford was stabbed several times, Hookstra said.

He said investigators are working to determine a motive. Authorities do not consider the slaying gang-related, although they said Corral has ties to a local gang.

Mumford, who worked in Oxnard, was part of an extended family that includes hundreds of people, said his grandmother, Mary Torres. Family members were shocked to hear of his death and have been gathering for support, she said.

Torres described her grandson -- the youngest of three children of her daughter, Michelle Mumford -- as a “lovely boy” who was a caring father to his 4-year-old daughter, Karissa.

“We don’t know why they would do this,” she said. “He wasn’t a gang member; he was a family man.”