Painter shot and killed after mistakenly trying to enter wrong apartment

A painting contractor is clinging to life after he mistakenly tried to enter the wrong North Carolina apartment — and was shot by the scared tenant, who won’t face jail time, authorities said.

Byron Castillo, 48, arrived at the Chatham Wood Apartments in High Point on Jan. 30 for a job he’d been hired to do by the complex, the High Point Police Department said in a statement.

But he was accidentally sent to the wrong unit — and after identifying himself as maintenance, started knocking on the door and tried to enter with a key that didn’t work, authorities said.

The resident, Gregory Sims, 28, was afraid someone was trying to break into his apartment and grabbed a gun, police said.

He told police he could see Castillo pulling on the door handle and using something in his other hand to fiddle with the deadbolt — so Sims opened the door and fired at Castillo, striking him once in the chest.

Castillo was rushed to a local hospital, where he underwent surgery and was placed on a breathing machine, police said.

By Tuesday, Castillo was still in the ICU, but his condition was improving, the statement said.

Police said they will not seek to prosecute Sims for the shooting.

“The Violent Crimes Unit consulted and presented the case to the Guilford County District Attorney’s Office and prosecution has been declined,” the statement said.

“Through unfortunate circumstances, Mr. Castillo attempted to gain entry mistakenly into the wrong apartment and Mr. Sims perceived that as a threat and fired his weapon.”

Source: Read Full Article