Paul Allen Perez

Serial Killer

Paul Allen Perez: The Murder of Five Infant Children

Overview

Paul Allen Perez is a California serial child murderer whose crimes involved five of his own infant children over approximately nine years. The children were born between 1992 and 2001 in Merced and Fresno, California. Each died or disappeared before reaching six months of age. Because several of the infants' bodies were never recovered, the case remained concealed for decades and eventually depended upon DNA analysis, family testimony, medical evidence and the repeated disappearance of Perez's newborn children. Perez lived a transient existence throughout Central and Northern California. Prosecutors portrayed the children's deaths as part of an unmistakable pattern rather than a series of unrelated tragedies. Five babies born to the same parents vanished or died in infancy, some without official burial records or credible explanations. Two pairs of children were even given nearly identical names, further complicating efforts to reconstruct the family's history. The case began to unravel after fishermen discovered the decomposed body of an unidentified baby in Yolo County in 2007. More than twelve years later, advances in DNA technology identified the child as one of Perez's sons. That identification led investigators to four additional infant siblings who were known or believed to have died under suspicious circumstances.

The Victims

• Kato Allen Perez died October 21, 1992, in Sacramento, California: Kato was born in Merced in 1992 and died while still an infant. His mother later testified that she heard Paul Perez striking the baby. Kato's death was recorded in California, although the full circumstances were not publicly recognized as part of a serial murder case until decades later.
• Mika Alena Perez died in 1996, exact date and location not publicly established: Mika was born on November 2, 1995, in Merced, California. She disappeared or died before reaching six months of age. Her remains have not been located. Investigators ultimately concluded that she was one of the children killed during Perez's pattern of infant abuse and violence.
• Nikko Lee Perez died in late 1996 or early 1997, exact date unknown: Nikko was born on November 8, 1996, in Fresno, California. He was approximately one to three months old when he was killed by blunt-force trauma. His body was wrapped in plastic and a Winnie-the-Pooh blanket, placed inside a metal cooler and weighed down with a brick and heavy metal objects. The cooler was later submerged in Conway Slough east of Woodland in Yolo County. His remains were discovered on March 29, 2007, but he was not identified until October 2019.
• Nikko Lee Perez died in 1997, exact date and location not publicly established: A second infant son was also named Nikko Lee Perez. He was born in Fresno in 1997 and died before reaching six months of age. His remains have never been recovered. The repeated use of the same name initially caused confusion when investigators reconstructed the identities and birth histories of the children.
• Kato Krow Perez died in 2001, exact date and location not publicly established: Kato Krow was born in Fresno in 2001. He was the last known infant victim in the series. Like Mika and the younger Nikko, he disappeared during infancy, and investigators have never recovered his remains.

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Confirmed Victims: (5)

Nikko Lee Perez , Date of Death: 1992

Convicted sex offender accused of killing 5 babies in California cold ...