A man who was confronted by his victim during a robbery attempt was arrested after his cell phone memory card left at the scene of the robbery showed graphic video and pictures of the man with children. The man, Edgar Giovanni Castillo, was arrested for offenses involving sex acts with children because of his mistake at a subsequent crime. Castillo attempted to rob a woman who struggled with him during the robbery attempt. The man unwittingly dropped his cell phone memory card during the struggle with the woman. After the robbery attempt, the woman discovered the memory card and put it in her phone but was shocked at what she saw. The memory card contained explicit video and pictures of Castillo with children. "The photos were so explicit we can't even reveal the details," said A Police spokesman Kenia Reyes.
Upon discovering the content of the memory card, the woman contacted police to notify them that she had evidence that Castillo was a child sex offender. The woman cooperated with the police and the U.S. Secret Service to help authorities find Castillo and arrest him. The authorities hailed the woman for coming forward and indicated she played an instrumental role in helping authorities locate and arrest Castillo.
Florida law makes all lewd or lascivious (sexual) touching of a minor child a crime. "Depending on the age of the child and the nature of the unlawful touching, such conduct can be punishable by life imprisonment," said Tampa criminal lawyer John Musca. It does not matter if the person accused of lewd or lascivious conduct toward a child believed the child was of legal age. Under Florida criminal law, it also does not matter that the victim consented or had engaged in previous acts that exhibited a lack of chastity, explained Musca. Even being accused of sex crimes against a child can have devastating consequences including a significant term in state prison and permanent damage to one's reputation and standing in the community. If a person has been accused of a sex crime particularly where the alleged victim is a child, the individual should seek legal advice as soon as possible. An unfounded charge of such a crime can have a huge impact on someone's life even without a conviction.
Musca Law provides the highest quality criminal litigation services to the residents of Tampa and its surrounding area. Our Tampa Criminal Defense Attorneys have successfully tried and defended, and appealed hundreds of cases in both State and Federal courts throughout Florida. These cases include, but are not limited to, felony cases and misdemeanor case, DUI, drug crimes, domestic violence, theft crimes, sex crimes, probation violations, white collar crimes, violent crimes, and motor vehicle crimes.
