A 67-year-old woman who was brutally assaulted and raped last month in Santa Maria has died, according to sources.
The victim, whose name has not been released, was beaten and sexually assaulted July 24 by a man who broke into a residence in the 900 block of Dejoy Street at about 9:45 a.m., according to Santa Maria police.
The house is located to the west of North Western Avenue, in a neighborhood of modest single-family homes a few blocks south of Oakley Park.
The woman suffered severe injuries as a result of the violent struggle with the suspect, and was taken to Marian Regional Medical Center.
Sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Noozhawk the woman died Saturday morning at the hospital.
Authorities say the suspect fled the scene after the attack, and broke into another house in the 1000 block of West Donovan Road, about five blocks north of Dejoy Street. He was later captured by police.
Victor Aureliano Martinez, 29, of Santa Maria, was booked into Santa Barbara County Jail on July 24 on suspicion of attempted murder, sexual assault and residential burglary.
Prosecutors are expected to review the woman’s cause of death to decide whether to charge Martinez with murder.
This marks the latest of several violent deaths this year in Santa Maria.
A teen boy was shot July 28 near the intersection of Western Avenue and Barrett Street.
No one has been arrested in connection with the killing of Oscar Daniel Joaquin, who died after the shooting.
The suspect in a domestic-violence homicide was fatally shot by police June 5 at a residence in the 300 block of West Williams Street.
Jesus Quezada Gomez, 50, told officers he had several firearms and threatened to shoot anyone who came close to the home.
Once they gained access to the residence, police discovered Teresa Meza, 41, had been stabbed multiple times. Officers called the killing a domestic violence homicide based on the relationship between the victim and her alleged assailant.
On May 16, a Guadalupe man, Modesto Melendez, 25, was found dead in a vehicle in the 400 block of West Willams Street after officers responded to a report of shots fired.
No one has been arrested for that shooting.
In March, police responded to the 900 block of West Morrison Avenue where they found a shooting victim, Alejandro Diaz Alvarez, 39, of Santa Maria.
Police arrested Wilfredo Rodriguez Chicas, 27, of Santa Maria, as the lone suspect in the case.
— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.