By Redaccion
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Saul C. Nava, 24, of Thousand Oaks, has been sentenced to 50 years and 8 months to life in prison for a series of brutal crimes, including the first-degree murder and torture of his girlfriend, Alisen Takacs-Escobar, and the kidnapping and torture of a previous girlfriend who survived. District Attorney Erik Nasarenko announced the sentencing Wednesday.
Nava was convicted by a jury on nine felony counts, including first-degree murder, torture, and kidnapping. Senior Deputy District Attorney David Russell of the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office Major Crimes Homicide Unit prosecuted the case.
“The sentence imposed reflects the heinous nature of the defendant’s horrific conduct,” Russell said. “While nothing can fully heal the victim’s family, this sentence ensures the community is protected from an offender who inflicted unimaginable suffering on vulnerable victims.”
The case stems from a 911 call Nava made on Dec. 24, 2021, after torturing and beating Takacs-Escobar for days in their shared studio apartment in Thousand Oaks. When Ventura County Sheriff’s deputies arrived, they found Takacs-Escobar dead, with extensive bruising, a large laceration on her head, and degrading words freshly tattooed on her chest.
Investigators discovered tattoo equipment, baseball bats, a hammer, and a screwdriver in the apartment, all of which were used in the abuse. Videos found on Nava’s cellphone, taken just hours before Takacs-Escobar’s death, showed him taunting her and showing indifference to her deteriorating condition.
During the investigation, authorities identified an ex-girlfriend who had survived Nava’s abuse. Nava began a relationship with the survivor when they were teenagers. He confined her to a closet in his home, physically abused her, and threatened her with a knife when she attempted to escape. The abuse ended when Nava started dating Takacs-Escobar in the summer of 2021.
The court’s sentence ensures Nava will serve a lengthy prison term for his crimes, providing some measure of justice to the victims and their families.
