Dating app killer whose cover-up of grisly crime led to one of the worst fires in California history thrown behind bars for life
Victor Serriteno, 33, was convicted Friday in the 2020 killing of a single mom he had met through a dating app — as well as the murders of two additional victims who burned to death in a fire he set to cover his tracks, according to KSW Action News.
Serriteno, of Vacaville, was found guilty of multiple counts of murder and arson in Solano County Superior Court and sentenced to 73 years-to-life in state prison, according to the district attorney's office.
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5 Victor Serriteno was sentenced to 73 years-to-life in state prison, according to the district attorney's office.
Vacaville Police Department
He had pleaded no contest.
The convicted killer met his victim, Priscilla Castro, a 32-year-old mother from Vallejo, on the evening of Aug. 16, 2020, after arranging a meeting through a dating app.
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It was the last time the mom of a 9-year-old girl was seen alive.
Castro's family became concerned when she never came back from the date.
No one could reach her on her phone and her social media accounts had gone dormant.
Investigators used her cellphone records to track down her car, a 2007 Mercedes-Benz C230, that they found abandoned in a rural area.
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5 Serriteno was convicted of killing Priscilla Castro after they met through a dating app.
Vacaville Police Department
That same day, a fire was spreading out of control nearby.
It would become known as the Markley fire, and it killed Douglas Mai, 82, and Leon 'James' Bone, 64, when their homes became engulfed in flames.
The Markley Fire eventually fed into the LNU Lightning Complex Fire – one of the most destructive conflagrations in California's history, destroying 330,000 acres in the Bay Area.
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5 The deadly Markley Fire started in August 2020.
AFP via Getty Images
Two weeks later, after the fire was extinguished, officials were able to identify Castro's charred remains from a keepsake found next to them.
'Although the remains were so badly burned and unrecognizable, there was an angel pendant located in the debris that belonged to Priscilla Castro,' authorities said at the time.
Police ruled Castro's death a homicide and started an investigation.
Detectives homed in on Serriteno, the last person to contact her before she died.
He was arrested for the single mother's death on Sept. 11, 2020, and then later rearrested for the arson and deaths of Mai and Bone after officials established that the fire started after Serriteno attempted to dispose of Castro's body by setting her remains on fire, according to reports.
5 Firefighters spent over a month trying to contain the blaze, according to Cal Fire.
AFP via Getty Images
5 The Markley Fire destroyed 330,000 acres in the Bay Area.
AFP via Getty Images
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Although investigators weren't able to discern how Serriteno murdered Castro due to the state of her remains, prosecutors said he did it in his home.
'This was one of the most catastrophic fires in the history of Solano County. Lives of those impacted have been forever changed,' Solano County District Attorney Krishna Abrams said in a statement.
Castro's family members swore they would get justice for the single mother.
'I knew there were ugly people in the world, but I never knew they would do something to someone so close to us,' her sister, Jasmine Castro, told local CBS affiliate KOVR TV. 'He doesn't deserve to get away with not one bit of this.'
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With Serriteno's no contest plea, the prosecutors said that is exactly what the family is getting.
'Although we cannot undo these vicious, brutal, and senseless acts by Defendant Serriteno, hopefully this plea today will provide certainty that the defendant stands convicted, that he is held accountable, and that there is some sense of justice and closure for all of those affected,' Krishna Abrams said in a statement. 'Most importantly, he will not be able to harm our community again.'
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