A California man who couldn’t handle being dumped will spend the rest of his life behind bars after admitting he broke into his ex-girlfriend’s father’s home and set it on fire, killing her and her two young sons as they slept.
Jose Carmen Cardona pleaded guilty Monday to three counts of first-degree murder, along with charges of attempted murder, child abuse, arson, and vandalism, according to the San Joaquin County District Attorney’s Office. He was immediately sentenced to life in prison for the deaths of 32-year-old Lizbeth Gutierrez-Salazar and her sons, Juan, 10, and Julian, 7.
Prosecutors said Gutierrez-Salazar ended her two-year relationship with Cardona on June 24, 2024. After he allegedly threatened to kill her, she took her three sons to her father’s trailer in Stockton, hoping to stay somewhere safe for the night.
Just hours later, that safe haven turned into a crime scene.
At 6:17 a.m. the following morning, the Stockton Fire Department responded to reports of a fire at the trailer. Once firefighters extinguished the flames, they discovered Gutierrez-Salazar and her two youngest sons dead inside.
Her oldest son, who was 14 at the time, survived. Investigators said he told them he was asleep when he heard a noise and woke up to see Cardona inside the home. As he ran after him, he heard his mother yelling and saw the trailer engulfed in flames. The fire also spread to a neighboring residence, causing additional damage.
Authorities later determined the blaze was intentionally set. Detectives obtained an arrest warrant, and Cardona was taken into custody on July 11, 2024.
San Joaquin County District Attorney Ron Freitas called the crime an act of unimaginable cruelty.
“Today, we have secured a measure of justice for Lizbeth Gutierrez-Salazar and her two innocent young sons, Juan and Julian, whose lives were brutally taken while they slept in their own home,” Freitas said in a statement. “While no sentence can ever bring them back or erase the pain inflicted on their family, the defendant’s decision to accept responsibility ensures he will face severe, permanent consequences for these heinous crimes.”
The plea agreement brought a swift end to the case at the request of the victims’ family.
But for those left behind, the loss of a devoted mother and two young boys in such a violent and heartbreaking way is something no sentence can truly undo.
I wonder if you give him the same treatment how would he react