Man Convicted in Mutilation of His Spouse

A Panorama City tile setter accused of strangling his wife, butchering her with a carving knife and dumping her remains off the Ventura County coast was found guilty of first-degree murder Wednesday.

Alfonso Castillo, 38, bowed his head as Ventura County Superior Court Judge Herbert Curtis III announced the verdict after a three-day trial.

Curtis, who decided the case after Castillo waived his right to a jury trial, ruled brain hemorrhages detected during an autopsy of the victim’s severed head show that Castillo strangled her for several minutes--enough time to form a deliberate intent to kill.

As Curtis set a Sept. 25 sentencing date, Castillo quietly raised his hand, like a student in a classroom, indicating that he wanted to speak.

He turned to an interpreter sitting next to him and spoke to her in urgent Spanish, then looked up at the judge as the interpreter translated his words: “I would like to apologize for all this, that’s all.”

Castillo faces a minimum 25 years in state prison and could be held for the rest of his life.

Outside the courtroom, the prosecutor said the evidence against Castillo was overwhelming.

He was arrested Dec. 6 after a Ventura County sheriff’s deputy stopped near Mugu Rock to investigate an illegally parked truck and spotted Castillo climbing up a rocky area from the surf, splattered with blood.

Castillo told authorities the blood was from a cut on his arm and that he was climbing the rocks to dispose of a cat he had run over.

But deputies shining lights on the water saw human limbs floating in the surf. The victim was later identified as Maria Pinaloza Ambario, 34, a Pacoima factory worker and Castillo’s wife. In his truck, police found trash bags, gloves and a receipt for a carving knife.

At the couple’s apartment, a detective found a bow saw, plastic sheeting, knives and, in the garbage disposal, a human heart. Surveillance video from outside the apartment the night of the killing showed a man disposing of several trash bags. Ambario’s clothes and belongings were found in nearby trash bins.

The defense did not dispute that Castillo killed and cut up his wife of two years but argued there was no premeditation, urging a finding of second-degree murder.