District Man Pleads Guilty to Kidnapping and Sexually Assaulting Intoxicated Stranger

            WASHINGTON – Saul Castillo, 20, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to kidnapping and sexually abusing an intoxicated stranger in the stairwell of his apartment building in Northwest Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips.

            Castillo pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to charges of kidnapping and second-degree sexual abuse. After completing any term of incarceration imposed by the court, Castillo will be subject to deportation proceedings, lifetime registration as a sex offender, and a period of supervised release. The Honorable Judith Bartnoff ordered that Castillo be detained pending sentencing on Nov. 3, 2017.

            According to the government’s evidence, Castillo found the victim in the early morning hours of May 7, 2017 on a sidewalk near Lafayette Square in downtown Washington. She was extremely intoxicated, unable to walk, and told Castillo that she wanted to go to her home. Castillo hailed a passing taxi and brought her back to his apartment building in the 1700 block of Seventh Street NW.

            Once inside, the victim refused to enter Castillo’s fourth-floor apartment and repeated that she wanted to go home. On multiple occasions, she fell and laid down on the hallway floor due to her intoxication. She tried to push Castillo away and return to the elevator to leave the building, but Castillo blocked her and pulled her back toward his apartment. Because of the commotion this was causing in the hallway, Castillo lifted her and carried her to the fourth- floor staircase, where Castillo sexually assaulted her. His conduct inside the building was captured on building surveillance cameras, and Castillo was arrested on May 12, 2017.

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Juanita Harris and Paralegal Specialist Tiffany Jones. Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Marisa West and J. Matt Williams, who investigated and prosecuted the case.