A Lancaster man convicted of murdering his live-in girlfriend with a sword in front of her four young children was sentenced on Tuesday to 36 years to life in state prison, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced.
Jesus Humberto Canales, 35, was found guilty by a jury on March 10 for the murder of 26-year-old Lucy Preciado and on four counts of child abuse, a news release from the DA’s office said.
The jury also “found true” an allegation that he used a sword.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Eric Harmon handed down the prison sentence in an Antelope Valley courtroom after the victim’s oldest daughter, now 15 years old, delivered a victim impact statement, prosecutors said.
Preciado was killed on July 12, 2008, in front of her four children, whose ages at the time ranged from 7 months to 9 years old.
Her 9-year-old daughter was the one who called 911 to report the crime.
“My dad just stabbed my mom,” the girl told the 911 operator. “Please, just hurry up. I don’t want my mom to die.”
In the days following Preciado’s murder, Canales, an El Salvadoran national who went by the nickname “Chuey,” fled to Pomona before going to Las Cruces, New Mexico, authorities said.
From there, Canales fled to Mexico where he was apprehended five years later, in November 2013, after being featured on the television show “America’s Most Wanted,” according to the DA’s release.