A Hammond man got 25 years Wednesday under a plea deal for killing a 15-year-old teen who sold him marijuana during a botched drug deal.
Court records show he took off, then abandoned the body in the vehicle blocks away.
Christopher Wells, 22, pleaded guilty Jan. 8 to voluntary manslaughter, a Level 2 felony. It was done under sudden heat, according to court documents.
In court, Wells apologized to Jesus Castillo’s family.
“Thank you for forgiving me,” he said. “I wish I could go back to that day. There’s nothing I can say to bring your son back, or your brother back.”
Judge Natalie Bokota said Deputy Prosecutor Arturo Balcazar and defense lawyer Mike Woods presented two versions of what fueled the shooting — anger or fear.
She commended Castillo’s relatives, saying it was very “moving” to see when a victim’s family can “express forgiveness.”
Police were called around 8 p.m. March 11, 2021 to the 2800 block of 164th Street after reports of a shooting, documents state.
Wells said he went there with a friend to buy marijuana and THC cartridges from Castillo, a “kid” whom he bought drugs from before, records allege.
In a phone call with detectives, Wells claimed Castillo, of the city’s Hessville section, tried to rob him as Wells was buying drugs from him, court records allege.
Castillo’s body was found five blocks north in the parked red Ford Explorer Wells drove, court records state. The boy had been shot a dozen times, with seven bullet fragments later pulled out, according to a coroner.
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