Man enters plea in girlfriend’s death
A 26-year-old man accused of killing his girlfriend in May and leaving their 21/2-year-old son alone with her body entered an Alford plea to second-degree murder Monday.
With that Alford plea, Jose Castillo didn't admit guilt but acknowledged that the state could prove its case against him.
In exchange for his plea, prosecutors agreed not to argue against a proposed sentence of 10 to 25 years.
District Judge Ken Cory is scheduled to sentence Castillo on Jan. 23.
Authorities accuse Castillo of beating his 26-year-old girlfriend Esther Fernandez on May 12 inside their Pinewood Crossing apartment in the 700 block of Twain Avenue, near Swenson Street and Flamingo Road. An artery in Fernandez's thumb was severed with a knife.
After beating Fernandez and severing an artery in her thumb, Castillo left her and his son inside their apartment, police said. The toddler spent part of the day beside his dead mother before he was found, police said.
Castillo fled but turned himself in to the Ontario Police Department in California. Authorities later returned Castillo to Las Vegas.
Contact reporter David Kihara at dkihara@reviewjournal.com or (702) 380-1039.
