A man implicated in a high-profile series of attacks on homeless men around San Diego over the summer is not mentally competent to stand trial, a San Diego County judge decided on Friday.
During the hearing on Friday morning, the judge determined that Jon David Guerrero, 39, was not mentally capable to assist in his own defense. Criminal proceedings have been suspended.
The San Diego man faces three counts of first-degree murder, two counts of attempted murder and two counts of arson.
On Friday, as he sat in court to learn his fate, he was shaking and making strange noises.
A doctor testified that Guerrero was not competent and said he should be transferred from jail to a mental hospital to receive treatment.
The defendant will be transferred, prosecutors said, once there's an opening at the state hospital.
Guerrero is accused in five attacks that began July 3, and authorities believe he acted alone.
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The dramatic homicide investigation first surfaced when police found the badly burned body of 53-year-old Angelo de Nardo near train tracks in Bay Ho. Investigators say they believe the homeless man died before he was set on fire.
Police released surveillance video of a man seen in a convenience store buying gasoline and a gas can minutes before De Nardo's body was discovered. The man wore a distinctive green Mao-style hat, like the one Guerrero was wearing at his arrest.
On July 4, two homeless men were discovered attacked within an hour of each other in Bay Ho and Ocean Beach in the early hours of morning around 5 a.m. and 6 a.m.
They both suffered severe trauma to the upper body. 61-year-old Manuel Mason remains in critical condition. 41-year-old Shawn Longley died from the vicious assault.
On July 6, 23-year-old Derek Vahidy was found attacked and lit on fire in Pantoja Park near State and G Streets. He later died in the hospital.
Guerrero was arrested on July 15 after a fifth man was attacked at 18th and C streets.
Prosecutors have said Guerrero used railroad spikes to impale the victims as they slept.
It's unclear when criminal proceedings for Guerrero will resume. He can stay at the state hospital for up to three years.
