A Texas father who allegedly slit his two young children’s throats last week did so as they cried and begged for their lives.

Court documents obtained by the Houston Chronicle stated that Anna-Belle Faith Ndossoka, 1, cried and Marcel Ndossoka, 8, said “Daddy, I’m sorry,” in the moments leading up to their deaths Saturday at father Jean Pierre Ndossoka’s hands.

Jean Pierre, 62, allegedly called his estranged wife to tell her that he left a “present” on his bed—the “present” apparently being the bodies of their two young children. Police found the father in his car in Pasadena with a self-inflicted gunshot wound the following day, according to the Chronicle.

KTRK reported that children were at Jean Pierre’s apartment Saturday at his request. Their mother, Sabine Ntongo, had dropped the kids off that morning. That afternoon, he reportedly began calling Ntongo and threatening to kill the kids.

Jean Pierre also told Ntongo  the key was located under the mat. Police said mother raced back to the apartment, calling 911 while en route. She arrived to discover her two children’s bodies—and their father nowhere to be found, according to the news station.

Fox News reported that police found a bloody knife and a handwritten note on the bed near the boy’s body. The note was written in French and suggested that Jean Pierre intended to die with his children.

A court learned Monday how Jean Pierre told police that his daughter “just kept crying” as his older brother uttered his last words. The father initially told police that he had choked the children then admitted to slitting their throats with a knife, according to Fox News.

“The defendant then admitted that he had done something to his children and when asked ‘what?’ he motioned towards his neck,” court documents stated.

On Tuesday, the Houston father was charged with two counts of capital murder in connection with his children’s deaths.

[Featured image: Jean Pierre Ndossoka/Houston Police Department]