15-year-old student athlete ID'd as victim of gang-related stabbing in Costa Mesa
Allison Castillo — a student athlete who was recently invited to play soccer in Spain — was identified by the county coroner's office Monday as the teenager found collapsed in an outside courtyard on the 700 block of Shalimar Drive by police.
First responders were contacted Saturday at 12:30 p.m. regarding a stabbing and arrived to find the teen suffering from a life-threatening wound, according to a Costa Mesa Police Department release issued Sunday.
Officers and paramedics performed CPR at the scene and eventually transported the victim to a nearby hospital, where she died of her injuries a few hours later, the release stated.
Although CMPD spokeswoman Roxi Fyad declined to release Castillo's identity to the public, Orange County Sheriff's Department spokesman Gerard McCann confirmed Monday coroner officials had identified the victim as Castillo, a resident of Costa Mesa.
During their investigation of the incident, police detectives determined the stabbing may have involved a suspect with known gang ties, at which point investigators from CMPD's Gang Unit were called to the scene.
'The suspect was known to law enforcement as a known participant in illegal criminal gang activity,' Fyad said Monday.
That individual — Matthew Juarez, 31, of Anaheim — was quickly traced to a residence in the city of Anaheim, where he was detained without incident. Juarez was booked into the county's intake release center on Sunday and is awaiting charges from the district attorney's office.
Newport-Mesa Unified School District officials acknowledged Castillo was a student of the district, although a spokesperson did not indicate which school the student attended.
'She was a student in our district, and we are saddened by her passing,' the spokesperson said in a statement to media, declining to share further out of respect for the victim's family. 'Counseling and support services are available for our school community.'
Castillo reportedly played soccer for two years with So Cal Select, an independent scouting program that prepares young athletes to play in college- and professional-level international tournaments, according to the organization's Instagram page.
An online GoFundMe account established on behalf of Castillo's family recalled the youth as 'the life of the party, always bringing joy, laughter and warmth to everyone around her.'
'Her kindness, her ability to inspire, and her loving nature changed lives,' the page read. 'She was a kind soul who didn't deserve what happened to her. We demand justice for Allison, and we will not stop until those responsible are held accountable.'
Costa Mesa police detectives are asking anyone who may have information about Saturday's incident to contact Det. Eloisa Peralta at (714) 754-5039 or Investigator Eric Molina at (714) 754-5694.
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