Two stabbed in Modesto park fight — one fatally — are identified

The man who died from stab wounds suffered at Mildred Perkins Park on Saturday night was 20-year-old Michael Tipton, Modesto police reported Tuesday.

A second stabbing victim has been identified as Ricky Acuna, 19, who is expected to fully recover.

The stabbings occurred as two groups of people were fighting in the park, the Police Department said in a news release. Officers and medical personnel were dispatched to the park — on the 3200 block of Snyder Avenue, west of Dale Road — shortly before 10 p.m. Tipton was taken to a hospital, where he died.

Police released no information on any possible suspects.

Facebook profiles indicate Tipton and Acuna were friends, at least as of a few years ago. Both had attended Gregori High and lived in Salida.

“We believe all parties involved in the fight know each other somehow,” Modesto Police Department spokeswoman Sharon Bear said by text Tuesday. “... We are still investigating who was fighting whom and who stabbed whom.”

Anyone with information regarding this incident is urged to call Stanislaus Area Crime Stoppers at 209-521-4636.

This story was originally published November 27, 2018 at 11:34 AM.