Man caught on camera assaulting wife in front of their children claims ignorance about the source of the blood, according to police
A 38-year-old man in California will spend several years in prison for severely hurting and abusing his wife in an incident filmed on smartphone camera by two of his children as one of them sought to protect her mother by sheltering her with her hands.
Miguel Lazaro-Castillo was sentenced to four years in a state correctional prison by Yuba County Superior Court Judge Julia L. Scrogin on Monday, according to authorities.
In October, Lazaro-Castillo, of New York, pled no guilty to one count of felony domestic violence, one count of false imprisonment, and one count of misdemeanor child abuse.
Miguel Lazaro-Castillo (District Attorney’s Office of Yuba County)
According to a news release from the Yuba County District Attorney’s Office, deputies from the Yuba County Sheriff’s Office responded to an emergency call around 2 a.m. on Oct. 9 regarding an individual suspected of inflicting corporal injury on a spouse at a home in the 4200 block of Larson Street in Olivehurst, about 35 miles north of Sacramento, California.
The 911 call was made by one of Lazaro-Castillo’s children, according to authorities. The identities of the children and the wife were not released by the sheriff’s office.
“When deputies arrived six minutes later, they located Lazaro-Castillo’s wife lying facedown on the floor, surrounded by bloody napkins,” the office wrote in the release. “Lazaro-Castillo was sitting on top of her, and their three minor children, ages 15, 14, and 9, were also present.”
When questioned by detectives, Lazaro-Castillo initially denied striking his wife and claimed he “had no idea where all the blood came from,” according to deputies. According to investigators, Lazaro-Castillo’s 9-year-old child recorded the alleged abuse on a cellphone.
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“The video lasted over six minutes and showed Lazaro-Castillo repeatedly hitting his wife in the head and face. One of the children tried to protect her mother, shielding her with her hands,” prosecutors wrote. “Lazaro-Castillo slapped the child on the leg and continued assaulting his wife. Lazaro-Castillo turned his wife onto her stomach and forced her face down into the carpet for an extended amount of time.”
