A California jury found a man guilty Monday of decapitating the mother of his child with a samurai sword during an incident in San Carlos last year.

The San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office said a jury convicted Jose Solano Landaeta, 34, of first-degree murder in the brutal slaying of 27-year-old Karina Castro in September 2022.

Castro and Landaeta share a two-year-old daughter.

Landaeta can be sentenced to 26 years to life following the murder conviction.

“All I can say right now is that I’m relieved, but not as much as I’d like to be,” the victim’s father, Martin Castro, told the media Monday outside the San Mateo courthouse. “While I’m glad he’s going to be in prison for as long as humanly possible, my daughter’s still gone. I don’t find a lot of satisfaction out of this, but I’ll take whatever I can get.”

Landaeta pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity during the trial, with his defense attorney Robert Cummings saying afterward that the killer suffered from schizophrenia and psychotic breaks. 

His unstable mental condition is what led to the attack, Mr. Cummings said.

“The victim in this case, God rest her soul, was pushing everybody she could and threatened [Landaeta’s] mother’s life. … That drove him to go over there and commit the act that he’s now convicted [of],” the defense attorney said.

Evaluators found Landaeta competent to stand trial.

Castro had received a restraining order against Landaeta in April 2022, but the couple continued to interact with each other.

The grisly murder was an upsetting sight for officers who first arrived at the scene on Sept. 8, 2022.

Lt. Eamon Allen with the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office said at the time that officers were “a little beset” when they witnessed a woman who was “obviously deceased” at the crime scene.

• Matt Delaney can be reached at mdelaney@washingtontimes.com.