Last week, on Friday, Jan. 13, Austin-based DJ and event photographer Miguel Angel was injured after allegedly being attacked with a katana and stabbed in the back with a dagger. Angel said he was waiting for his friend, Kirkland Audain, to show up at his East Austin apartment when he heard a knock at his door and opened it at around 9 p.m.
According to Angel, a former Marine, the man at the door was wearing a ski mask and carrying a sword. “He came in swinging, and then he started hitting me with [the katana]. I was lucky that the katana blade was... I guess it was one of those cheap ones,” Angel explained. He said he held onto the weapon to stop the attack, and it began to slice open his fingers. After a short but intense struggle, Angel said he was stabbed in the back: “He pulled a dagger with his right hand, so it's on my left side. He goes behind me and hits once, and that one I feel, but then, when he hits the second time, I instantly go weak because it goes deep in there, and then he moves it around.” Angel said he fought against both blades, with one in each hand, until the attacker eventually ditched the katana because it wasn’t as easy to handle as the dagger. Angel suffered several injuries in addition to the stab wounds on his back, including cuts to his face and neck.
Miguel Angel, known as ulovei, is a popular DJ and event photographer.
Angel said he was being stabbed in the face when Audain entered the apartment through its open door and saw blood everywhere. Audain was apparently shocked and said he was going to call the cops. Angel described what happened next: “He tries to, like, he just starts calling the cops, and the [attacker] looks up at him and he's like, ‘No, you're not.’ He's like, ‘I'm gonna kill you too.’” At this point, Angel said the assailant shifted his focus and chased Audain, who was able to escape to his car and call police. Angel said he then shut and locked his door.
Angel “felt like recording everything” after the attack. He documented the scene using social media while trying to catch his breath. Shortly after, at around 9:15 p.m., he was taken to the hospital where he received almost fifty stitches and a few CT scans to ensure he didn’t suffer damage to his lungs or spine. Despite muscle and nerve damage that may cause minor problems in the future and an eight-ball-sized hematoma on his back, Angel said he got lucky.
Shusaku Shiroyama faces assault and burglary charges.
During the fight, Angel claims he recognized the voice of his attacker, who was screaming “war cries.” The man he recognized was Charlie Valentine, a chef and bar manager by trade. Valentine’s real name is Shusaku Shiroyama. Angel said he had hung out with Shiroyama before and had even begun to play shows at his bar. Although he did not understand Shiroyama’s motive, Angel acknowledged that Shiroyama was dating his ex-girlfriend at the time of the attack. “There's going to be a lot of stuff going around or whatever, but regardless of whatever gets said or whatever goes around, I still got stabbed this night,” Angel said.
According to public police reports, Shiroyama was charged with two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and one count of burglary of a habitation as a result of Friday’s events, but Angel said he hopes an attempted murder charge will be considered following a full investigation. After he was arrested, police connected Shiroyama to an unresolved Dec. 1 police report regarding a Fasten driver who was held at gunpoint, and he faces an additional assault charge for that incident (KXAN). Shiroyama is in custody and has not posted bail.
Until last weekend, Shiroyama held a stake in MOLOKO, a Clockwork-Orange-themed bar on Austin’s East Side. The bar has been quick to distance Shiroyama from their brand, and he was immediately stripped of partial ownership. The bar posted the following message on Facebook:
“We offer our deepest condolences to Miguel Angel & all his family & friends regarding the incident that occurred on January 13th. We stand by Miguel Angel & we are committed to helping with his recovery. The incident was a personal attack and was in no way affiliated with MOLOKO. The actual owners, Miguel Jimenez & Tami Neumann, assure you that Charlie Valentine no longer has affiliation with MOLOKO. To the community & our patrons, we cannot stress enough how truly sorry we are. We look forward to putting this dark chapter behind us and we thank you for your support.”
Angel was scheduled to play a show with fellow DJ King Louie at Volstead Lounge on the night of his stabbing, and he made an appearance at the event, against doctors’ orders, at around 12:30 a.m. “My friends had to help me get dressed [to go out]. I couldn’t put on my pants. I couldn’t even button buttons,” he said. Despite his injuries, it was important to Angel to make a bold statement. He explained, “I feel like, when people do shit like this to you, they do it to you ‘cause they're trying to stop you from doing something. They're trying to stop you permanently. I still made it to my gig, and I wanted to show him that.”
For Angel, the fight isn’t over. “With the courts, I gotta look at him. Hear him speak. And he has to hear me say this thing all over again, and I don't want to give him that power. I don't want him to hear me describe him stabbing me, but they're gonna make me do that,” he said.
Angel continues to play shows in Austin four to five nights a week.
Note: Angel’s words are taken from an interview conducted by the author.