Murder, Fire, and a Dating App: How One Man's Crime Led to a Deadly California Wildfire

• Victor Serriteno, 33, was convicted of murdering a woman he met on a dating app, and setting a fire to dispose of her body, which sparked the 2020 Markley Fire in California
• The fire ultimately merged into the LNU Lightning Complex Fire, destroying thousands of acres and killing two additional people
• He pleaded no contest and faces a sentence of 73 years to life in prison

A Bay Area man was convicted of killing a woman he met on a dating app and then starting a fire to dispose of her body — which started a wildfire in California that burned a quarter million acres in 2020.

The Markley Fire was started by Victor Serriteno, 33, and ended up killing two men. Serriteno pleaded no contest and was found guilty of three counts of murder and several counts of arson, prosecutors said. CBS reported that he will be sentenced to a total term of 73 years to life in a state prison. 

On Aug. 16, 2020, 32-year-old Priscilla Castro was last seen driving to a date with Serriteno, whom she met on a dating app. Her family grew worried after they hadn’t heard from her in a couple days and reported her missing, the outlet reported. Two days later, her car was found in Vacaville.

The same day Castro’s car was found, authorities were called to a fire which was spreading quickly off Highway 128. The fire, which became known as the Markley Fire, destroyed thousands of acres, hundreds of structures and numerous homes and livestock, CBS reported. 

Solano County residents Douglas Mai, 82, and Leon “James” Bone, 64, both died in their homes from the fire. The Markley Fire merged with other fires in 2020 and became the LNU LIghting Complex fire, one of the largest fires in California’s history. 

On Sept. 2, 2020, human remains were found near where the fire was started. Next to the remains, were an angel pendant that prosecutors say belonged to Castro. The remains were identified by authorities as Castro’s. 

Serriteno was arrested and charged with Castro’s murder nine days later, the outlet reported. The arson charges and two other murder charges were added in 2021. 

“It is with a heavy heart we bear this horrific news of this senseless death,” Vacaville police said in a statement to SFGATE at the time. Castro left behind a 9-year-old daughter. 

“Priscilla was and is a beautiful, strong, loving woman who didn’t deserve for this tragedy,” Castro’s sister said in a statement to the outlet. 

Investigators said they have not determined Castro’s cause of death but that she died the night she met Serriteno. “Priscilla Castro never left Vacaville alive, but instead was killed in Defendant Serriteno’s home,” the district attorney’s office said in a statement to the outlet. “After killing Priscilla Castro, Defendant Serriteno drove her up to the Putah Creek Wildlife Area off of Highway 128 where he dumped her body.” 

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Krishna Abrams, Solano County District Attorney said in a statement to the outlet that he hopes the pleas will hold Serriteno accountable for his actions and provide a sense of justice and closure for all those affected. 

Serriteno is currently in custody and will return to court on Aug. 14 to be sentenced, the outlets reported. 

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