A Bronx woman has been arrested for the 2020 murder of her newborn twin sons, whose bodies were found dumped in a rat-infested alley.
Stephanie Castillo, 36, was charged with multiple counts of murder on Friday, after DNA collected from a discarded drink container linked her to the crime, sources told the New York Post.
The twin boys, later named Zeke and Zane by NYPD officers, were found dead in Claremont in November 2020. Investigators never gave up on the case, and newly uncovered forensic evidence identified Castillo as their biological mother.
“Our detectives had the funeral for these two children,” said NYPD assistant chief Michael Baldassano. “Every year they had a memorial for these two children. They have never stopped caring about this case.”
Castillo now faces first- and second-degree murder charges in both deaths, along with counts of murder with intent and manslaughter.
Renford Cole, 75, the building superintendent who found the bodies, said the arrest has brought him peace. “Oh man. This is really a big burden lifted off my mind, a big weight,’’ he said.
“I’m so happy to know that they find the person because those were babies, innocent babies."
"I am going to sleep better tonight,” he said.
Cole discovered the bodies behind a College Avenue building, just blocks from the 44th Precinct, where Castillo was led out in handcuffs on Friday. One of the newborns was partially wrapped in a pet training pad with apparent head injuries and an umbilical cord around his neck. The other, found roughly 20 feet away, was inside a black plastic bag without visible trauma. Both infants were under 24 hours old.
Sources said Castillo previously lived in the building with her parents and had not disclosed her pregnancy to anyone. A breakthrough came when blood evidence from the crime scene led to a match in a genealogical DNA database, through a relative of the suspect. The NYPD’s forensic division narrowed in on Castillo, who was then tracked to a nearby shelter.
According to sources, Castillo unknowingly sealed her fate when she discarded a drink container. Investigators recovered it and matched her DNA to the crime scene.
“Interviews and video canvasses and the really great work of our forensic investigation division brought us to where we are today,” Baldassano said.
Homeland Security Investigations also assisted in Castillo’s arrest.
Nearly 20 officers had organised a funeral for the infants in 2021, placing their bodies in a shared white casket adorned with white flowers and a blue bow.
“I have never seen a case like this,” one detective had said at the time.
“These were two newborn babies who were full term and then put in garbage bags and thrown in a rat infested backyard."
"Their little bodies had fractures. This has weighed heavy on every detective,” he told the New York Post.
Cole recalled the day he made the grim discovery. “I saw [a trash bag] there from early in the morning, but I thought it was garbage. I paid it no mind because people threw garbage back there all the time,’’ he said.
Then, “I saw the legs sticking out. The legs were straight,’’ he said.
Initially thinking it was a doll, he was confused when he touched them, as they were soft.
"I went inside to get my buddy. He said it wasn’t a toy. I told him to call the police.”
“Today is a very good day,” Cole said.