A 24-year-old Marine recruiter is being tried on charges that he broke into a house in Michigan, stabbed an 11-year-old girl, and said he was going to “kill everyone inside.”
Wednesday, Cpl. Ricardo Perez Castillo gave up his right to a preliminary hearing. This means that his case, which includes felony charges of assault with intent to murder, first-degree home invasion, assault with intent to commit criminal sexual conduct, and carrying a weapon with unlawful intent, will now go to the 17th Circuit Court in Kent County, Michigan, where he may be put on trial.
Based on witness statements and a police investigation, prosecutors say Castillo broke into a home in River Bluffs, Rockford, Michigan, around 3 a.m. on June 15, took off his shirt and underwear, got a knife from the kitchen, and stabbed an 11-year-old girl who lived at the home and was friends with something else that girl had.
At the girl and her friend’s screams, Castillo quit stabbing her. The homeowner held him with a gun until the police came. She hurt her left arm and shoulder and went to a nearby hospital to get help.
According to court papers shown on both Channel 13 ABC and Channel 8 Wood TV, deputies from the Kent County Sheriff’s Office found Castillo in the girl’s bedroom with a bloody knife next to him.
According to the arrest report, video shows Ricardo Castillo going into the River Bluffs home and taking off his shoes, socks, and pants. This was revealed by local ABC affiliate Channel 13. “Ricardo Castellón took a knife out of the kitchen drawer and went upstairs wearing only his underwear and T-shirt.”
The story says that Castillo planned to break into the house and kill the whole family.
It was written in the report that Ricardo Castelló said he tried the first couple of bedroom doors but they were locked. “Ricardo then opened the door to the master bedroom and saw the homeowner and his wife asleep.”
The story says that he chose to look for a “easier target.”
The deputy wrote, “Ricardo (Castillo) then went into the room where (the girl) was sleeping.” “Ricardo told the police that he was going to kill her and have sex with her body.”
That house wasn’t his first stop that night, though.
A homeowner in River Bluffs, Michigan, was cleaning up after a dinner party about an hour before Castillo is said to have broken into a nearby home. He went to the back of the house to bring some things inside from his deck and saw a stranger by the kitchen sink.
Later, cops found out that the man was Castillo. He asked him who he was, why he was in his house, and to leave.
Someone told them Castillo walked toward the door but stopped and said, “I don’t even know what the eff is going on, but just in case, be careful.” Make sure you have weapons. “That’s when I slammed the door shut and called the police,” Channel 8 Wood TV said.
He was charged with a felony and is being held in jail in Kent County, Michigan, on a $2 million bail.
During the meeting, District Judge Sara J. Smolenski said, “This case is as scary as it gets, it’s as horrible as it gets, and it puts all of us in a fear zone like no other.”
As a traveling recruiter for the Marines since October 2023, Castillo has worked out of the Lansing recruiting station. He is from Waterford, Michigan, which is more than two hours away.
An officer in the Marine Corps told Marine Corps Times in an email answer Thursday that he has a main military occupational specialty in infantry and has served with the 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
The police told the local news that Castillo had been drinking earlier in the evening and had been seen in downtown Rockford, Michigan, which is more than a mile away from the house.
Officials in the Marines didn’t know of any punishments given to the corporal, and cops in Michigan said they couldn’t find any criminal records for Castillo in the state.
The Marine Corps said they would get back to the media with a word about the case later.
“The terrible event that happened makes us very sad.” The case is being heard in Michigan courts right now, so it would not be proper to say anything about the specifics of the case at this time. During this very sad time, our thoughts and prayers are with the victim’s family and friends.
Police told local news sites that the act seems “totally random” right now and that they haven’t found any link between Castillo and the people at the house.