A jury in Southern California has delivered a guilty verdict against a 28-year-old man for the brutal murder of his estranged spouse. On November 21, Zarbab Ali from Hawthorne, California, was convicted of first-degree murder for killing 25-year-old Rachel Castillo, as announced by Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko in an official statement.

The court found that Ali had employed a knife and had strategically “lied in wait” for Castillo, ambushing her in a premeditated attack. At the time of her tragic death in 2022, Castillo was in the final stages of her divorce from Ali, according to the district attorney’s office.

The incident unfolded when Castillo’s sister reported her missing from their Simi Valley apartment on November 10, 2022, as noted by the District Attorney’s Office. Responding officers discovered alarming signs of violence and noted that Castillo’s phone, keys, and vehicle were still at the scene.

Authorities found Castillo’s remains three days later in the Antelope Valley desert, leading to Ali’s arrest at his parents’ residence in Victorville, California, that same day.

Despite pleading not guilty to the murder charge, Ali confessed during the trial that he killed Castillo, reportedly motivated by jealousy over suspected infidelity, as covered by local publications, the Ventura County Star and the Simi Valley Acorn.

During the trial, prosecutors presented Ali’s recorded confession to the Simi Valley police, captured in November 2022, where he detailed his actions. He recounted entering Castillo’s apartment, switching off the lights, lying in wait for her to emerge from her room, and then fatally stabbing her multiple times. Furthermore, Ali admitted to transporting her body to the Antelope Valley for burial, later returning to desecrate it early the following morning, according to the reports.

Before the trial, Ali had already pleaded guilty to sexual contact with Castillo’s remains after her death, per the District Attorney’s office.
 
Ali’s sentencing is set for Jan. 12 at Ventura County Superior Court. He faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole.

As Chris Castillo, Rachel’s father, told the Ventura County Star following the verdict, “We are very happy that justice will be served in this case in this life and the next.”