Public Safety Briefings – Police Arrest Homicide Suspect for Stabbing on Bike Path – InsuranceNewsNet

VENTURA — Police arrested the suspect in a Ventura knife attack Tuesday night that killed a 26-year-old man three days earlier.

The stabbings took place around 2:01 p.m. Saturday on a bike path located west of Victoria Avenue across the street from Montalvo Hill Parkaccording to Ventura Police Department.

The victim, identified as Marcos Guzman Reyes, 26, of Ventura, was found with multiple stab wounds to his upper torso. He was transported to Ventura County Medical Center where he succumbed to his injuries, authorities said.

Through an investigation, police determined that Reyes was stabbed while standing next to his bicycle on the bike path. The suspect, identified as Pedro Munoz39, from Ventura, fled the area on foot and drove through Victoria in Montalvo Hill Park. He escaped through a nearby mall and was last seen in the Montalvo area.

Around 5:30 p.m. Tuesdaya Ventura patrolman spotted a man who matched Munoz’s physical description in the dead end of Valentine’s Road to the east of Victoria Avenue. Munoz attempted to flee and fought the officer, but was arrested within minutes and taken into custody.

Munoz was incarcerated in the Ventura County Jail on suspicion of murder, felony assault on a police officer and various drug misdemeanor charges. His bail was set at $1.36 millionand it must appear in Ventura Superior Court for indictment at 1:30 p.m. Thursdayaccording to online prison records.

Hazmat teams called in to

acid spill in Port Hueneme

PORT HUENEME – Hazardous materials crews responded to a chemical spill on a road in Port Hueneme on Tuesday evening.

A 911 caller reported a truck dropping something near the intersection of Pleasant Valley Road and Ventura Road shortly after. 6:30 p.m.said Andy VanScivera Ventura County Fire Department spokesperson.

Firefighters, who dubbed the response the Valley Incident, provided a standard response, including crews from Oxnard Fire and Ventura County Fire Departments.

Officials determined the spill was a type of acid. About a third of a gallon was contained and neutralized. No injuries or environmental damage were reported, VanSciver said.

The crews were evacuated from the scene to 9 p.m.

Man killed by train identified

CAMARILLO — A man hit and killed by a train Monday night in Camarillo was identified Tuesday.

The victim, Agustin Villalpando Jr.., 53, was described as homeless, according to the Ventura County Medical Examiner’s Office. His death was ruled accidental.

On Monday, Villalpando was hit by a freight train near the Camarillo Subway Station by Lewis Roadaccording to Ventura County Sheriff’s Office. Trains were stopped in both directions for several hours while deputies investigated.

Villalpando died at the scene from blunt-force head injuries, officials said.

Van Nuys man pleads guilty to hazardous fuel waste and fraud

A Van Nuys man involved in February 2020 Oxnard hit-and-run accident that also caused the hazardous waste cleanup pleaded guilty last week to charges stemming from the incident.

Karen Khosteghyan, 37, changed her guilty plea to Ventura County Superior Court for criminal insurance fraud, hazardous waste disposal and hit-and-run driving, according to the Ventura County Attorney’s Office.

Khosteghyan was driving with a 500-gallon tank of diesel fuel in his truck bed on Feb. 1, 2020, when he was involved in a collision in Oxnard, according to the district attorney’s office.

He fled the scene, driving his truck to Camarillo, leaking diesel fuel from the tank until he abandoned it. The tank continued to leak in Camarillo, the agency said. Ventura County Fire Department investigators estimate that 130 gallons of fuel had leaked.

When the Oxnard Police Department contacted Khostegyhyan, he claimed his truck was stolen and he was not driving when the accident happened. He then filed a claim on his automobile insurance policy, issued by Kemper Insurance.

In an investigation by Oxnard Police, County Fire Department, Kemper Insurance and the District Attorney’s Auto Insurance Fraud Unit uncovered Khostegyhyan’s ruse. He is responsible for unlawfully causing a hazardous substance release, claiming his truck was stolen, and making a false insurance claim.

Khosteghyan is due to appear for sentencing August 22 at 1:30 p.m. in courtroom 23.

He faces up to five years and a fine of up to $50,000 or double the amount of the fraud, whichever is greater, for auto insurance fraud and up to three years in prison and a fine of $10,000 to deposit hazardous waste on the road.