A Northern California jury on Tuesday convicted Paul Allen Perez of murdering his five infant children in a case that spans a decade and multiple counties.

Perez, now 63, was found guilty of multiple counts of murder, along with one count of assault on a child under eight with force likely to produce great bodily injury resulting in death, the Yolo County District Attorney's Office said. Jurors also found true a sentencing enhancement for multiple murders.

The conviction stems from the deaths of Perez's infant children between 1992 and 2001. The case came to light after the remains of one infant were discovered in 2007, weighted down and submerged inside a cooler in Conway Slough, east of the city of Woodland. Investigators determined the child's death was a homicide and preserved DNA evidence from the remains.

Years later, familial DNA analysis was used to identify Perez as the biological father of the infant. That discovery ultimately linked him to the deaths of several of his children born in different parts of California, including Merced and Fresno. Investigators said all of the children were believed to be under 6 months at the time of their deaths.

The infant found in 2007 was identified as Nikko Lee Perez, born in 1996 in Fresno. The other four were identified as Kato Allen Perez, born in 1992 in Merced; Mika Alena Perez, born in 1995 in Merced; Nikko Lee Perez, born in 1997 in Fresno; and Kato Krow Perez, born in 2001 in Fresno 2001.

"These crimes involved pure evil. The defendant should die in prison," Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig said in a statement. "May the souls of his murdered children rest in peace."

According to prosecutors, Perez was transient throughout Central California during the period when the crimes occurred. Some of the victims' remains were never recovered, but investigators were able to establish the deaths through DNA evidence and other investigative findings.

Perez was arrested in January 2020 while serving a separate prison sentence for unrelated offenses. His arrest occurred just days before his scheduled release.

Perez now faces life in prison without the possibility of parole, officials said. He is scheduled to be sentenced on April 6, 2026 in Yolo County Superior Court.