CMC nurse was stabbed to death in Grover Beach — and police are looking for information
A California Men’s Colony nurse who was found dead in Grover Beach last week was stabbed to death and police are asking for the public’s help with the investigation, according to a Wednesday morning news release from the Grover Beach Police Department.
On Thursday, police arrived at a home in the 200 block of South 9th Street to conduct a welfare check when they found the victim, identified as Athena Ilona Valentiny, dead.
Police said Wednesday that Valentiny, 64, of Grover Beach was stabbed to death and they are investigating the case as a homicide.
Investigators are looking to speak to anyone who may have known or worked with Valentiny, and anyone who might have seen anything “out of the ordinary or suspicious” in the area on Oct. 24 or 25, according to the release.
Police are looking for Valentiny’s dog, who may have walked away from the home between Oct. 24 and 25, according to the release. The dog “was a constant companion of hers.”
Valentiny was a licensed vocational nurse at CMC, spokeswoman Lt. Monica Ayon told The Tribune in a phone interview. Valentiny had been employed at CMC since 2013, but had been with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation since 2011, Ayon said. She previously worked at California State Prison, Corcoran.
Police ask anyone with information about Valentiny or her dog to call Sgt. Juan Leon at 805-473-4511 or email him at jleon@gbpd.org. Anonymous tips can be submitted by calling CrimeStoppers at 805-549-7867 or going to the CrimeStoppers website.
This story was originally published October 31, 2018 at 9:45 AM.