Juan Castillo ('16) murder suspect arrested

On May 19, almost three months after the sudden murder of recent graduate Juan Castillo, Sherwin Mendoza Espinoza, 42, a suspect concluded by detectives to be involved in the murder was arrested.Espinoza was determined a definite link to the murder, and has been accused of shooting Castillo. He has been charged with murder and illegal possession of a firearm, and his bail has been set at $3 million at the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Men’s central jail, where he is currently being held.So far, investigators have found no connection between Espinoza and Castillo, although the investigation is still ongoing. No motivation for the shooting has been found, but the investigation is still underway.According to the Santa Monica Police Department, Juan Castillo was shot in the head around 12:45 a.m. while sitting in the passenger seat of a car parked on the 2100 block of Pico. He was then found on the ground outside the Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center on the 1300 block of 16th St., unconscious, around 5:08 a.m.The police were able to link these two instances together and find Espinoza as a suspect. They have requested and encouraged that anyone with any type of information come forward to further broaden their knowledge of specifics in the case.