A Santa Barbara man accused of killing his two young children in Mexico is incompetent to stand trial for murder, a federal judge determined last week.

U.S. District Judge Cathy Ann Bencivengo issued orders Wednesday that Matthew Coleman is not competent to stand trial and will be committed to mental health treatment for restoration of competency.

Bencivengo set a status hearing for December and a competency hearing for March, when Coleman’s mental status will be reviewed.

Being found incompetent to stand trial means someone cannot understand the charges against them and help in their own criminal case defense.

Prosecutors did not oppose the competency order, according to court records.

In September 2021, the U.S. Attorney’s Office charged the then-40-year-old Coleman with two counts of foreign first-degree murder of U.S. nationals.

Prosecutors decided in February not to seek the death penalty if he is found guilty.

Coleman has pleaded not guilty to the charges and is being held in federal custody with no bail.

According to the FBI, Coleman drove from Santa Barbara to Rosarito, Mexico, on Aug. 7, 2021, with his 3-year-old son, Kaleo, and 10-month-old daughter, Roxy.

His wife, Abby, reported him and their children missing to Santa Barbara police and agreed to allow officers to track his phone, which showed he was located in Mexico, according to law enforcement agencies.

Mexican authorities discovered the bodies of two young children at a ranch near Rosarito and Coleman was arrested as he returned to the United States at the San Ysidro border crossing, the FBI said.

Investigators said he confessed to killing the children with a spearfishing gun.

Coleman allegedly told investigators about multiple conspiracy theories, including that “he believed his children were going to grow into monsters so he had to kill them,” according to an FBI affidavit.

He also said he “was receiving visions and signs that his wife possessed serpent DNA and had passed it on to his children,” the FBI said.