A Michigan man will serve several decades in prison for a “completely random” attack in which he broke into a home and brutally stabbed an 11-year-old girl during a sleepover.
As previously reported by Law&Crime, the man simply entered into the home, climbed upstairs, discovered the two girls asleep, and attacked.
According to the Kent County Prosecutor’s Office, Ricardo Perez Castillo, 25, pled no guilty in October to one count of assault with intent to murder, first-degree home invasion, and second-degree assault with intent to perform criminal sexual conduct.
When he was first arrested last year, the defendant faced one allegation of carrying a weapon with unlawful intent.
On Wednesday, 17th Circuit Court Judge Christina Mims sentenced the former Marine Corps recruiter to 40 years in jail.
The sentencing session was not without drama, according to a courtroom report from Grand Rapids-based ABC affiliate WZZM.
“This case is disturbing on so many levels,” Mims informed Castillo. “It’s disturbing that you would go into these people’s home, that you didn’t know, that you would arm yourself in their home, that you would almost kill a child who was only trying to sleep over with her friend.”
The underlying event occurred on June 15, 2024, when Castillo broke into the kitchen of a home on Ella Terrace Court shortly before 3 a.m. While covered in a “large amount of blood,” the defendant grabbed a kitchen knife and attacked the homeowner’s daughter’s friend “multiple times,” Kent County Undersheriff Bryan Muir told Grand Rapids-based Fox station WXMI. The homeowner’s daughter, for her part, was not physically injured in the terrifying attack.
Law enforcement initially had no idea what had happened.
“Right now, we believe this is a completely random act and there’s no connection to the residence or the family whatsoever, and that’s obviously one of those case facts that’s concerning to us,” the undersheriff told Grand Rapids-based NBC affiliate WOOD at the time of the arrest, adding there was “nothing to connect the suspect” to the residence he entered or the people inside the house.
Later, the odd nature of the case became more macabre.
According to court documents obtained by Kalamazoo-based CBS station WWMT and WZZM, Castillo allegedly intended to kill the girl “and then have sex with her dead body.”
During the sentence hearing, additional frightening details were revealed.
“The egregiousness with which this defendant acted is horrendous,” Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Elizabeth Bartlett told the court. “His words immediately following the crime also demonstrate a complete lack of remorse. Some of the phrases he used to describe what happened are incomprehensible. He acknowledged to the cops that he meant to kill everyone in the house and had equipped himself with a knife for that aim.
However, the since-condemned guy has altered his tune, kneeling in court to deliver his allocution.
“I ask for forgiveness,” he stated, according to WZZM. “I understand I don’t deserve it. I can’t image all of the nightmares. I can’t image how you’ve felt for the last 15 months. But I apologize. I am honestly from the heart. I was lost. I found God, and it made me realize how lost I truly am. I ask for forgiveness for all of you, both families, and the entire Rockford community. Sorry. “I am sorry.”
In court, the homeowner also spoke, denying the defendant’s allegations of alcohol-fueled bloodlust, stating that his daughter is always terrified, justifying his decision not to shoot Castillo, and requesting that the judge give the highest punishment possible.
“We had to move,” he explained. “We had to clean up only blood and mess. We’ve heard what he’s wanted to do to our family, as well as to my daughter and her friend, and it’s simply unacceptable. “This should not be taken lightly.”
The leading prosecutor read the girl’s impact statement.
“I remember being in a lot of pain on the floor,” the girl wrote to WZZM. “I recall seeing my blood everywhere. I recall feeling warm sensations streaming down my body from the blood. I recall the fragrance of it. I could still feel the ache. I recall being terrified and not understanding why this happened to me. I felt afraid. I never thought an innocent overnight would land me in the hospital with serious injuries.”
