Oxnard Man Arrested in Slaying of Woman
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Oxnard detectives didn’t have to look far for the suspect in the strangulation last month of a 23-year-old mother of three.
Oxnard resident Daniel Damien Martinez, 20, was already in custody Thursday at the Ventura County Jail after being arrested May 25, hours after Lorena Gonzalez’s death.
He was being held in lieu of $1-million bail on charges of assault with a deadly weapon in an unrelated incident.
Oxnard Police Sgt. Jim Seitz said Martinez had been introduced by a mutual friend to Gonzalez on the evening of her death and that they spent several hours talking and socializing.
Later, Gonzales and Martinez were in an alley near the 2700 block of Acacia Street when Martinez attacked the woman for no apparent reason, the police sergeant said.
Gonzalez’s body was found about 5:30 a.m. by a passerby, Seitz said.
Hours later, Martinez was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon after he smashed a 40-ounce beer bottle over the head of a male acquaintance.
Seitz described Martinez as a transient from South Oxnard who was living on the street or with friends and acquaintances whenever possible.
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