Kidnapping, Murder, and Mayhem

 

Shootout at Castillo's Jewelry Store

By Robert A. Waters

When Ramon Castillo buzzed open the door for two customers, he didn't realize that within minutes, he would be fighting for his life. Castillo's Jewelry in Houston, Texas sat on 4502 Canal Street. It was 2:00 p.m. on December 16, 2010, when the two men arrived. They brought a 10K gold three-diamond ring to the counter. Speaking in  Spanish, they asked for an appraisal.

Eva, Ramon's wife of thirty years, was also working that day.  She buzzed another man in shortly after the two showed up. The third man pulled a pistol and yelled in Spanish, "This is a robbery." He told one of the other men to take Ramon and Eva to the back and tie them up. 

Juan Daniel Castillo, the jewelry store owners' son, explained what happened next. "They were going to tie them up and shoot them in the head," he said. "One man tied up my mom with plastic tie straps. They threw her on her stomach to the floor. She hit her face on the floor. This guy went to tie up my dad. He got a tie strap on my dad's left hand. When this guy took my dad's right hand and pulled it behind him, my dad reached for his gun behind his back."

Ramon raised the gun, a 9mm Beretta semiautomatic, and fired. He hit the robber closest to him in the eye, killing him instantly.

The other two robbers pulled guns and began firing. Castillo yelled for Eva to stay down, and returned fire. One of his rounds hit the fire extinguisher. It began to spew a silent fog into the store. Within seconds, visibility had diminished to almost nothing.

That allowed Ramon to grab another gun, a .380 semi, and fire several times as he ran toward the back of the store. He knew he had been hit more than once, but he couldn't let that stop him. It was life or death for the jewelers.

In the back, he grabbed a brand-new sawed-off shotgun that was leaning against the wall. It had never been fired, but was loaded.     

He heard a click from a pistol, and heard a cartridge hit the floor. He knew one of the robbers had run out of ammunition. He aimed the shotgun toward the sound, and blasted out a shot. The second robber fell. Within seconds, as they fought through the smog, he killed the third robber.

When it was over, Eva dialed 9-1-1, then called her son who rushed over to the store.

Cops said the robbers were part of a Guatemalan gang of thieves. They identified the men: Nelson Wilfredo Tambora-Ramiro, 21, Rene Rodriguez, 25, and Onilton Balanos Castillano, 38.

 After the shootout, Ramon was rushed to the hospital. He'd been hit in both legs, the stomach, and the right shoulder.

He underwent several surgeries, but did manage to survive.

The Castillo family still runs the jewelry store.

When asked how he survived, he whispered, "God was there." 

Ramon Castillo is a true hero.