By Redacción
redaccion@latinocc.com
District Attorney Erik Nasarenko announced that Alfredo Vasquez, 25, of Moorpark, was convicted on June 4 of assault with a deadly weapon in connection with a violent gang-related attack on a hiking trail in Simi Valley.
A Ventura County jury found Vasquez guilty of felony assault and determined that the attack was gang-motivated and caused significant bodily injury. Superior Court Judge Paul Baelly also confirmed three aggravating factors: the use of great violence, the use of a weapon, and the defendant’s history of violent conduct.
The incident occurred on July 9, 2020, when a man hiking the Simi Valley Cross trail with a friend encountered multiple groups of people walking uphill. Among them were two men, including Vasquez.
As the two groups crossed paths, Vasquez reportedly issued a gang challenge, asking, “Where you from?” When the victim responded, Vasquez charged at him with a knife. During the confrontation, Vasquez stabbed the victim twice in the chest and slashed his forearm, causing serious injuries.
The victim managed to flee and sought help by knocking on a door in a nearby residential neighborhood. He was taken to Los Robles Hospital, where he received multiple staples for his wounds. He now lives with permanent scarring.
Investigators from the Simi Valley Police Department recovered the victim’s blood-stained white T-shirt, which contained Vasquez’s DNA. A gray T-shirt also linked to Vasquez was found nearby. Surveillance footage showed the victim running shirtless and bleeding, followed shortly by two individuals, including a shirtless man matching Vasquez’s description.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Hayley Moyer, of the Ventura County District Attorney’s Major Crime Gang Unit, led the prosecution.
“Ventura County residents should feel safe and secure while hiking on our beautiful trails, not worried about encountering gang violence,” Moyer said. “We thank the jurors for their thoughtful deliberation in holding the defendant accountable for this vicious attack.”
Vasquez remains in custody without bail and is scheduled to be sentenced on July 3, 2025, at 9 a.m. in courtroom 26 of the Ventura County Superior Court. He faces a potential 14-year prison sentence.
