A man who answered the door of his family’s Pennsylvania home wearing a robe and holding two knives is accused of stabbing his sister and their elderly parents to death.
Kevin Castiglia, 55, allegedly hacked up his elderly parents, Fred, 90, and Judith, 84, as they slept and then stabbed his sister, 53-year-old Deborah Castiglia, to death when she discovered their bodies, Bucks County prosecutors said Wednesday.
But investigators say they still do not know what motivated the brutal killings.
The three bodies were found earlier this week when Deborah Castiglia’s boyfriend went looking for her after not hearing from her for several days, according to the criminal complaint obtained by NBC10.
After he was unable to locate her at her home in Doylestown on Saturday, January 24, he went to her parents’ home in Churchville around 6:30 p.m. Sunday and saw her car in the driveway. He knocked on the door, but when no one answered, he left and returned the next day around 2:15 p.m.
That’s when Deborah’s brother, Kevin Castiglia, came to the door wearing a robe, according to the complaint. When the boyfriend told Castiglia he wanted to speak with Deborah, Castiglia allegedly replied that she was not home and then, according to investigators, threatened him with a knife.
”Don’t ever come here again or I will kill you,” Castiglia allegedly warned the man while pointing at him with what the boyfriend described as a large “Psycho”-type chef’s knife. The boyfriend quickly left and called 911.
“When police arrived, they were confronted by Castiglia who was still armed with two knives, one of which was already stained with blood,” Bucks County District Attorney Joe Khan said.
Police said Castiglia was speaking incoherently and did not answer questions about his family. When officers asked him to drop the knives, he allegedly pointed them at the cops. An officer deployed a stun gun, but Castiglia pulled the probes from his body, slammed the door and locked it, according to investigators.
A video from a neighbor obtained by NBC10 shows Castiglia after he barricaded himself inside the home, staring at the cops from a window.
After a tactical team was called in, officers made their way inside the home, where they discovered Deborah’s body in the kitchen, and the bodies of their parents in the basement – all stabbed to death.
Castiglia then barricaded himself in a bathroom, refusing to surrender. The standoff lasted five hours before he was taken into custody. He was first transported to a local hospital where he allegedly told a doctor, “I hurt someone,” according to the criminal complaint.
Hours later, Castiglia allegedly stated: “I killed my parents in their sleep,” and “I killed my sister when she found them.” He later repeated the same confession during a police interview, investigators said.
On Wednesday, Khan led a moment of silence for the victims. Fred and Judith Castiglia had recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary, he said.
Khan described Deborah Castiglia as a devoted mother and beloved teacher. A spokesperson for the Centennial School District told NBC10 that Deborah taught at Klinger Middle School from 1999 to 2018 and at William Tennent High School from 2018 until her death. She also coached girls’ volleyball and softball teams.
“Her loss is deeply felt across our school community, and I know this news is painful for many,” the spokesperson added.
Castiglia was arraigned this week on multiple charges including three counts of criminal homicide, abuse of a corpse, possession of an instrument of crime, terroristic threats, reckless endangerment, simple assault and resisting arrest.
He is being held without bail at the Bucks County Jail and is set to return to court on February 12.
