A young mom who was tragically murdered in Northern California last week has just been identified, KGO-TV reports.
The victim was identified as 27-year-old Door Dash driver, Karina Castro, who was a mother to two daughters aged seven and one.
Per the report, Castro's youngest daughter was fathered by a 33-year-old man named Jose Raphael Solano Landaeta - who also goes by Rafa Solano. It is alleged that he is the perpetrator.
Solano reportedly had a history of violence against Castro, who got a restraining order against him in April this year.
Her father, Marty Castro, told KGO-TV that he regretted he hadn't done more to stop his daughter from seeing Solano, stating: "Every time I saw her, I would beg her. Don't talk to him. Leave him and it seemed like the more I did that, the more she would see him."
It was later revealed Solano doesn't work, and often posts rap songs on YouTube.
Castro's grandmother, Diana Gannon, told the news station that Solano was a diagnosed schizophrenic who was mixing alcohol with his medication. "If there's somebody out there abusing your daughter, don't take off. Don't let it go. Don't take no for an answer. You feel responsible, no matter what anyone says," she said.
Solano allegedly beheaded Castro with a sword in front of a number of witnesses. This was said to have been the culmination of a heated Snapchat exchange between the two parents in the days preceding the murder.
Per KGO-TV, Castro threatened to come forward with allegations about Solano's past, which included the rape of a minor. She also reportedly told him she would expose his alleged sexual relationship with another man.
Solano warned Castro not to "f*** around," to which Castro wrote: "U wanna put a target on my back, ur homies gunna kno the real u."
The verbal confrontation eventually became physical, when the pair met outside Castro's apartment block - that was when Solano allegedly murdered his daughter's mother with a sword.
The aftermath of the violent episode was so traumatic that the deputies who arrived on the scene are undergoing peer support, the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office told NBC Bay Area.
"Anytime someone loses their life, it's certainly a tragedy. As far as the shocking nature of it, I do know that the deputies that first arrived on scene were a little beset by the scene. We are providing them peer support. We are also providing support for the witnesses that were on scene as well because there were several civilian witnesses," the Office said.
Police were able to apprehend Solano when he returned to the scene of the crime, per the Sheriff's Twitter account. He is currently being treated for a medical emergency.
The alleged murder weapon, a samurai sword, has still not been located. Police officials are requesting that anyone with information pertaining to the location of the weapon contact Detective Brandt with the sheriff's office at 650-333-8195 or [email protected].
