Topline: Paul Allen Perez faces life in prison after DNA evidence linked him to the deaths of five of his children over a nine-year period.
Published: January 21, 2026 2:49 pm ET
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Paul Allen Perez (via Yolo County Sheriff’s Department)
WOODLAND, CA — A Northern California man was convicted on January 6 of first-degree murder in the deaths of his five infant children between 1992 and 2001.
A jury convicted Paul Allen Perez, 61, of five counts of first-degree murder with special circumstances, according to a news release from the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office.
The verdict followed a trial that detailed a decade of violence against his children, whose remains were found in different locations years after their deaths.
The investigation began in March 2007 when a fisherman discovered the remains of a baby in a weighted and sealed container in a Sloughhouse waterway. In 2019, advanced DNA testing and forensic genealogy identified the child as Nikko Lee Perez, who was approximately 6 months old when he died in 1996.
Law enforcement officials affirmed that the arrest of Perez in 2019 was made possible by the same genetic technology used to identify the Golden State Killer. The Yolo County District Attorney’s Office used a private laboratory to compare the 2007 remains with public DNA databases, leading investigators to Perez’s relatives.
At the time of his arrest, Perez was serving time in Kern Valley State Prison for auto theft and felony evading a police officer, as per Wendy Wilcox of the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office.
According to the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office, further investigation revealed four other victims. Authorities identified the children as Kato Allen Perez, born in 1992; Mikaela Renee Perez, born in 1995; Nikko Lee Perez, born in 1996; Kato Alexander Perez, born in 1997; and Paul Allen Perez Jr., born in 2001.
Evidence presented during the trial showed the infants died from blunt force trauma. Investigators found the remains of three of the children in 2020 after the initial identification of Nikko. One child’s remains have not been recovered, according to trial testimony.
The Yolo County Sheriff’s Office reported that the children were born to different women. During the proceedings, witnesses testified about a pattern of abuse and concealment. Prosecutors said Perez used his position as a father to isolate the victims before killing them.
In a statement provided to People magazine, Deputy District Attorneys Deanna Hays and David Robbins called the matter a tragic case.
“It’s a tragedy that Paul Perez committed repeated violence against women for over four decades,” the prosecutors said. “It’s a tragedy that no one protected the women in his life. It’s a tragedy that no one protected these five babies. But the greatest tragedy is that we still have three missing bodies.”
The prosecutors told People that while Perez will spend the rest of his life in prison, nothing can undo the abuse he inflicted on the infants. They said he viewed the children as burdens and less than human.
“Like most domestic abusers, he wanted control and power,” the prosecutors said. “To obtain that power and control he used violence. His desire for power control was exacerbated by the fact that he is a man who delights in violence.”
According to the statement, Perez targeted men, women, children, and animals. The prosecutors said that while decades of violence defined his past, his future will be defined by life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Perez sat through the reading of the verdict without visible emotion. He had previously pleaded not guilty to all charges. His defense team argued during the trial that there was insufficient physical evidence to link Perez directly to every death, citing the decades that passed since the infants were last seen.
The jury deliberated for two days before returning the guilty verdicts. Under California law, the special circumstance convictions make Perez eligible for a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig said in a statement that the case represented some of the most difficult work his office has performed. Reisig noted the length of time between the crimes and the conviction required extensive coordination between multiple law enforcement agencies.
“These crimes involved pure evil,” said Reisig. “The defendant should die in prison. May the souls of his murdered children rest in peace.”
The sentencing hearing is scheduled for later this year in Yolo County Superior Court. Officials from the sheriff’s office said the investigation into the missing remains of the fifth child continues.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
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California Man Convicted of Murdering 5 of His Infant Children
Paul Allen Perez faces life in prison after DNA evidence linked him to the deaths of five of his children over a nine-year period.
By Kate Byrd
Published: January 21, 2026 2:49 pm ET
Paul Allen Perez (via Yolo County Sheriff’s Department)
WOODLAND, CA — A Northern California man was convicted on January 6 of first-degree murder in the deaths of his five infant children between 1992 and 2001.
A jury convicted Paul Allen Perez, 61, of five counts of first-degree murder with special circumstances, according to a news release from the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office.
The verdict followed a trial that detailed a decade of violence against his children, whose remains were found in different locations years after their deaths.
The investigation began in March 2007 when a fisherman discovered the remains of a baby in a weighted and sealed container in a Sloughhouse waterway. In 2019, advanced DNA testing and forensic genealogy identified the child as Nikko Lee Perez, who was approximately 6 months old when he died in 1996.
Law enforcement officials affirmed that the arrest of Perez in 2019 was made possible by the same genetic technology used to identify the Golden State Killer. The Yolo County District Attorney’s Office used a private laboratory to compare the 2007 remains with public DNA databases, leading investigators to Perez’s relatives.
At the time of his arrest, Perez was serving time in Kern Valley State Prison for auto theft and felony evading a police officer, as per Wendy Wilcox of the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office.
According to the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office, further investigation revealed four other victims. Authorities identified the children as Kato Allen Perez, born in 1992; Mikaela Renee Perez, born in 1995; Nikko Lee Perez, born in 1996; Kato Alexander Perez, born in 1997; and Paul Allen Perez Jr., born in 2001.
Evidence presented during the trial showed the infants died from blunt force trauma. Investigators found the remains of three of the children in 2020 after the initial identification of Nikko. One child’s remains have not been recovered, according to trial testimony.
The Yolo County Sheriff’s Office reported that the children were born to different women. During the proceedings, witnesses testified about a pattern of abuse and concealment. Prosecutors said Perez used his position as a father to isolate the victims before killing them.
In a statement provided to People magazine, Deputy District Attorneys Deanna Hays and David Robbins called the matter a tragic case.
“It’s a tragedy that Paul Perez committed repeated violence against women for over four decades,” the prosecutors said. “It’s a tragedy that no one protected the women in his life. It’s a tragedy that no one protected these five babies. But the greatest tragedy is that we still have three missing bodies.”
The prosecutors told People that while Perez will spend the rest of his life in prison, nothing can undo the abuse he inflicted on the infants. They said he viewed the children as burdens and less than human.
“Like most domestic abusers, he wanted control and power,” the prosecutors said. “To obtain that power and control he used violence. His desire for power control was exacerbated by the fact that he is a man who delights in violence.”
According to the statement, Perez targeted men, women, children, and animals. The prosecutors said that while decades of violence defined his past, his future will be defined by life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Perez sat through the reading of the verdict without visible emotion. He had previously pleaded not guilty to all charges. His defense team argued during the trial that there was insufficient physical evidence to link Perez directly to every death, citing the decades that passed since the infants were last seen.
The jury deliberated for two days before returning the guilty verdicts. Under California law, the special circumstance convictions make Perez eligible for a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig said in a statement that the case represented some of the most difficult work his office has performed. Reisig noted the length of time between the crimes and the conviction required extensive coordination between multiple law enforcement agencies.
“These crimes involved pure evil,” said Reisig. “The defendant should die in prison. May the souls of his murdered children rest in peace.”
The sentencing hearing is scheduled for later this year in Yolo County Superior Court. Officials from the sheriff’s office said the investigation into the missing remains of the fifth child continues.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
Editor's Note: ThePo makes every effort to accurately transcribe the contents of affidavits of probable cause contained in criminal complaints. Often, the complaints themselves are copies of copies of faxed copies, and are difficult to read. To confirm the accuracy of our transcription, contact the Magisterial District Court listed above and request a copy of the criminal complaint. It's a public record to which you are entitled.
Must Read
Editor Picks
Latest Articles
California Man Convicted of Murdering 5 of His Infant Children
Paul Allen Perez faces life in prison after DNA evidence linked him to the deaths of five of his children over a nine-year period.
By Kate Byrd
Published: January 21, 2026 2:49 pm ET
Paul Allen Perez (via Yolo County Sheriff’s Department)
WOODLAND, CA — A Northern California man was convicted on January 6 of first-degree murder in the deaths of his five infant children between 1992 and 2001.
A jury convicted Paul Allen Perez, 61, of five counts of first-degree murder with special circumstances, according to a news release from the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office.
The verdict followed a trial that detailed a decade of violence against his children, whose remains were found in different locations years after their deaths.
The investigation began in March 2007 when a fisherman discovered the remains of a baby in a weighted and sealed container in a Sloughhouse waterway. In 2019, advanced DNA testing and forensic genealogy identified the child as Nikko Lee Perez, who was approximately 6 months old when he died in 1996.
Law enforcement officials affirmed that the arrest of Perez in 2019 was made possible by the same genetic technology used to identify the Golden State Killer. The Yolo County District Attorney’s Office used a private laboratory to compare the 2007 remains with public DNA databases, leading investigators to Perez’s relatives.
At the time of his arrest, Perez was serving time in Kern Valley State Prison for auto theft and felony evading a police officer, as per Wendy Wilcox of the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office.
According to the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office, further investigation revealed four other victims. Authorities identified the children as Kato Allen Perez, born in 1992; Mikaela Renee Perez, born in 1995; Nikko Lee Perez, born in 1996; Kato Alexander Perez, born in 1997; and Paul Allen Perez Jr., born in 2001.
Evidence presented during the trial showed the infants died from blunt force trauma. Investigators found the remains of three of the children in 2020 after the initial identification of Nikko. One child’s remains have not been recovered, according to trial testimony.
The Yolo County Sheriff’s Office reported that the children were born to different women. During the proceedings, witnesses testified about a pattern of abuse and concealment. Prosecutors said Perez used his position as a father to isolate the victims before killing them.
In a statement provided to People magazine, Deputy District Attorneys Deanna Hays and David Robbins called the matter a tragic case.
“It’s a tragedy that Paul Perez committed repeated violence against women for over four decades,” the prosecutors said. “It’s a tragedy that no one protected the women in his life. It’s a tragedy that no one protected these five babies. But the greatest tragedy is that we still have three missing bodies.”
The prosecutors told People that while Perez will spend the rest of his life in prison, nothing can undo the abuse he inflicted on the infants. They said he viewed the children as burdens and less than human.
“Like most domestic abusers, he wanted control and power,” the prosecutors said. “To obtain that power and control he used violence. His desire for power control was exacerbated by the fact that he is a man who delights in violence.”
According to the statement, Perez targeted men, women, children, and animals. The prosecutors said that while decades of violence defined his past, his future will be defined by life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Perez sat through the reading of the verdict without visible emotion. He had previously pleaded not guilty to all charges. His defense team argued during the trial that there was insufficient physical evidence to link Perez directly to every death, citing the decades that passed since the infants were last seen.
The jury deliberated for two days before returning the guilty verdicts. Under California law, the special circumstance convictions make Perez eligible for a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig said in a statement that the case represented some of the most difficult work his office has performed. Reisig noted the length of time between the crimes and the conviction required extensive coordination between multiple law enforcement agencies.
“These crimes involved pure evil,” said Reisig. “The defendant should die in prison. May the souls of his murdered children rest in peace.”
The sentencing hearing is scheduled for later this year in Yolo County Superior Court. Officials from the sheriff’s office said the investigation into the missing remains of the fifth child continues.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
Editor's Note: ThePo makes every effort to accurately transcribe the contents of affidavits of probable cause contained in criminal complaints. Often, the complaints themselves are copies of copies of faxed copies, and are difficult to read. To confirm the accuracy of our transcription, contact the Magisterial District Court listed above and request a copy of the criminal complaint. It's a public record to which you are entitled.
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