Man brutally murdered in Orange Walk…

In a grizzly murder, less than twenty-four hours before Valentine’s Day, one man was brutally murdered in Orange Walk Town. Police are on the hunt for the lover of the murdered man, Enrique Castillo, who is believed to be the main suspect. Forty-four year old Castillo returned from his job as a head waiter at Caye Chapel on Thursday evening to the safety of his Orange Walk Town home on the Belize Corozal Road and that was the last time his family saw him alive. By nine o’clock this morning, the Castillo family discovered the horrific murder. Castillo, who lived alone and portrayed an outwardly homosexual lifestyle, reportedly held frequent parties at his house with male friends and last night was no different. His family who lived in a separate dwelling in the same yard, thought nothing of it when “Ric”, as he was affectionately known, was hosting a few of his male friends at his house. But the first person to suspect that something was wrong was Castillo’s neighbour who lives immediately in front of him across the street.

Voice of Neighbour
“Dis morning bout three-thirty soh, bout three to four, I hear dis noise but then I heard things falling and breaking like glasses. I got so frightened that I called the policeman and they asked me where is that. I told them right here at Quidi Casa house. And it took them a time to come but at the same time I saw a person going in the yard, the dog didn’t bark much so I saw the person return back and he got another person to go with him. So the two of them went and meanwhile the lights were on and it seems like the house was open. So the two of them went into the house and I could see a person walking in the house cause the lights were on. After a while I saw the lights went off and I heard silence. But before that the deceased person was already—I couldn’t hear no noise before the two of them entered the house I couldn’t heat no noise after that. So I only saw when those two went, first one went then the two of them. But by that time the person inside the house was already calm so they went in and they out the lights. I saw when two of them ran across the other side of my house. That happened about minutes to five, five so. I don’t know what time it was but I was conscious that I was going to wake my son because he usually goes at six o’clock to school. I saw a person running on the on the other side of my yard but didn’t know who it was.”

But the neighbour claims that despite a complaint made, the police did not stop to investigate and merely drove by in their patrol vehicle. And her suspicion was confirmed hours later when Castillo’s sister, Pastor Antonette Young and brother, Quidi Castillo, made the gruesome discovery. The main suspect in the slaying is Castillo’s lover, Nimrod Tillett, who family and friends say lives right across the street.

Antonette Young, Sister of Murder Victim
“I saw him last night as he recently got off his work. I saw him last night at about six-thirty at the grocery store and I said what’s up and he just said nothing. I said I’ll see you in the morning because normally when he comes in I spend time with him. He’s a brother that I love very much and I spend time with him. This morning I brought a piece of steak for his lunch for him to cook. He normally cooks and have us over. So I went by his bedroom window and tapped on it for several times. I didn’t hear him and the kitchen window is open so I peeped through the kitchen window and that’s when I observed that the faucet was running, that water was running and blood all over the kitchen sink. I called out to my sister and I said Stella in my spirits I’m not feeling good about this. Something is wrong. While she was peeping I dialled 911 and my brother Quidi came and when my brother Quidi came, the police officers came along just about the same time and they all went in and that’s when they discovered it. This is about nine-thirty this morning.”

Marion Ali
“He had friends over last night?”

Antonette Young
“He had friends over last night for sure. He had three friends over. One friend, according to him, left about two-thirty this morning and the other two stayed. He said that he left at two-thirty and they were dancing, they were having fun—about four of them, three plus my brother—and he left and left the other two here.”

Quidi Castillo, Brother of Murder Victim
“He collapsed on the kitchen floor and what I observed is a slash to his throat and a real bloody mess. And where this took place was in the bedroom and what I saw of him was trying to reach the closest window to my house so that—crying out for help.”

Marion Ali
“Did you hear those cries for help?”

Quidi Castillo
“No, I did not. I got up this morning like twelve-thirty going one o’clock to go to the bathroom. They were still over there and I heard music playing. I identified at least two of the people, definitely, no questions asked, two of the people that I saw over here at the time. I went back to bed and I got up at five this morning to go to work. When I got up everything was so quiet, which was normal after a night of partying, it would be quiet at that time in the morning. I left and went to work. I was at work when I was called by my wife like nine o’clock this morning because my sister came over and had brought something for him and they were calling out to him and there was no response. When they observed the door, they saw blood stains on the door so they kinda retracted and that’s when she called me.”

Antonette Young
“He lived a homosexual life. I loved him in spite of all that because he was my brother and I will continue to love anybody in that realm. We need to get the message across.”

Marion Ali
“What do you think happened to him?”

Antonette Young
“My brother probably had confrontation with one of his friends and according to the friend that left at two-thirty, he said that one specific individual was confronting him because of money. He wanted money and my brother wouldn’t have given it to him. My brother is very sceptical about his money. He was a party goer but he took care of his finances and apparently that confronted probably ended up this way.”

Marion Ali
“You said he lived a homosexual life. Was this friend who was harassing him for money, were they involved?”

Antonette Young
“Yes, and this is a relationship that probably developed I would say last six months maybe. His money is gone, his jewelry is gone, the house is in total ransacked, it’s disgusting, there’s blood all over.”

Marion Ali
“How much money is missing?”

Antonette Young
“According to my sister-in-law, he had just gotten one of his cheques cashed and I think he had eight hundred to a thousand dollars.”