Prosecutors revealed new details on the 55-year-old man charged with homicide after authorities say he fatally stabbed his elderly parents and his sister inside the family home home before engaging in a five-hour standoff with police.
Kevin Carl Castiglia, of Northampton Township, was denied bail Tuesday evening during a preliminary arraignment before District Judge Brian Marriott. He faces three counts of criminal homicide, along with other charges, including abuse of a corpse, terroristic threats, and possession of an instrument of crime.
The victims were identified as Fred Castiglia, 90; Judith Castiglia, 84; and Deborah Castiglia, 53 of Plumstead Township.
The investigation began Monday around 2:15 p.m. when police were dispatched to 26 Heather Road residence in Northampton Township’s Churchville section for a well-being check.
The request was made by Deborah Castiglia’s boyfriend, who told authorities he had been unable to reach her since Saturday, authorities said.
According to a criminal complaint, the boyfriend grew suspicious after visiting the home Sunday and noticing Deborah’s car was present, but there were no footprints in the snow.
When he returned Monday, he was met at the door by Kevin Castiglia, who was dressed in a robe. Castiglia allegedly told the man his sister was likely on vacation before brandishing a large “Psycho-style” chef’s knife and threatened to kill him, Bucks County District Attorney Joe Khan said during a Wednesday press conference.
The boyfriend retreated and called 9-1-1.
Moments after they arrived, officers were confronted by Castiglia, who was armed with two knives, one of which appeared to be bloodstained, Khan said.
Police said they fired Taser devices, but Castiglia retreated to a second-floor bedroom and barricaded himself.
“Multiple attempts were made by the response team to get him to come out of that room peacefully,” Khan said. “The defendant consistently refused to leave the room.”
The 55-yar-old man was eventually taken into custody at approximately 8 p.m. by the multi-agency South Central Emergency Response Team.
Inside the home, officers discovered Deborah Castiglia’s body in the kitchen. Fred and Judith Castiglia were found dead in their bed.
The Bucks County Coroner’s Office determined the cause of death for all three victims was homicide by stabbing, Khan said.
Investigators believe Deborah Castiglia, a math teacher in the Centennial School District for 26 years, was killed Saturday while visiting. Her parents, who had lived in the home since the 1970s, were likely killed the night before the police well-being check, officials said.
While being treated at a local hospital and in interviews with detectives, Castiglia confessed to the killings, prosecutors said.
Deputy District Attorney Monica Furber stated that the defendant “confessed to inflicting wounds that were consistent with what the coroner found during the autopsies.”
In addition to the knives held by the defendant, authorities were reported to have recovered two samurai-style swords from the residence. Khan stated that one of the recovered knives is believed to be the murder weapon.
Khan praised the responding officers for using “heroic and professional restraint” during the standoff, and added that they worked to bring the suspect in alive despite being faced with an armed man.
“You saw these trained officers and their colleagues doing everything they could when it would have been possible, arguably justifiable, to use a higher level of escalating force,” Khan said.
Castiglia, who was unemployed and living with his parents at the time of the incident, is being held at the Bucks County Correctional Facility.
“I think the message is certainly that this was a tragic incident. It was, thank goodness, an isolated incident,” Khan said. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the family at this time.”
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