Friend says felon found with gun at Chiefs rally was trying to help
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — We’re learning more about a third person arrested at Union Station in the aftermath of the shooting at the Chiefs Super Bowl parade and rally who was also charged.
Police aren’t connecting Jose Castillo, 36, to the shooting. But he does face a firearm charge and was arrested very close to the shooting scene.
Meanwhile, friends and family Jose Castillo should be hailed as a hero instead of being behind bars.
In the 48 hours since Lisa Lopez-Galvan was killed and 22 others were shot victims and witnesses have been waiting on answers.
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“The man that I seen with the gun was a heavier set male, he was standing behind her kind of over a little and I seen him draw a gun and he started shooting,” shooting victim Emily Tavis told FOX4 Thursday.
Almost immediately after hiding behind a trash can himself to escape the gunfire, Bryan Wayne photographed a man now identified as Jose Castillo being cuffed and taken into custody by authorities.
“Maybe even 20 seconds I stood back up and started taking pictures of what had happened about 10 feet in front of me there was a lady laying on the ground, people were already performing life saving CPR on her.”
Prior to the discovery of charging documents describing Castillo’s arrest at Union Station Wednesday, the only mention of suspects remaining in custody by police has been two juveniles.
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“It makes me wonder why he was tackled and arrested? It doesn’t make sense other than he was a part of the violence at Union Station that day,” Wayne had been thinking.
Friday we learned Castillo, who has a previous marijuana felony conviction was charged with illegal possession of a firearm. But the Wichita man and a witness listed in the charging document say the Glock 22 handgun wasn’t his.
“I don’t think we were anywhere near the altercation, he was just simply trying to walk out as everyone else. He stumbled upon that and picked it up,” Castillo’s friend explained reached by phone in Wichita.
According to charging documents with slurred speech and bloodshot eyes Castillo explained he was walking toward the restroom and picked the gun off the ground after the shooting. He says he planned to turn it into police.
“Everyone is thinking why pick it up? Why do that? In the heat of the moment. you see kids running around people running around, he was just trying to help,” Castillo’s friend explained.
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“If I was in that situation, I would have had my arms up saying ‘police police here’ and pointing toward the gun. I wouldn’t have put my fingerprints on that gun,” Wayne reacted.
According to charging documents a gunshot residue test was taken on Castillo’s hands. The Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office declined to say what the results of that test were.
Castillo is being held on $25,000 bond. He’s eligible to post 10%.
Under condition of the bond, he is not allowed to possess or be in the presence of firearms or ammunition, not to possess or consume alcohol, and not to possess or consume any controlled substance unless lawfully prescribed.
He’s scheduled to have a bond review hearing in 10 days.
