SALISBURY — The Rowan County Sheriff’s Office arrested a woman Saturday morning in connection with Thursday’s shooting death of a 29-year-old man and is now looking for her son as a suspect.
Maria Castro, 38, of 2110 Harrison Road, was arrested and charged at 3 a.m. Saturday with accessory to first-degree murder after the fact. She was being held in the Rowan County Detention Center under $250,000 bond.
The sheriff’s office has issued a warrant for her son, Jose “Daniel” Torres Castro, 23, also of 2110 Harrison Road. Attempts to locate him have been unsuccessful, said a press release sent Saturday by a sheriff’s detective.
The warrant issued for Maria Castro says there is probable cause to believe she helped her son escape detection, arrest and punishment knowing that he committed the murder of Guillermo Montes-Gonzales. It also says she gave false information and attempted to hide the victim’s vehicle.
Montes-Gonzales, 29, of 165 S. Oakhurst Lane, was found dead with several gunshot wounds early Thursday morning in a cul-de-sac at the end of Barley Run, located off Oak Mountain Road in western Rowan County. According to the press release, detectives discovered evidence that links Daniel Castro to Montes-Gonzales’ death.
During the course of their investigation, detectives found Montes-Gonzalez’s missing blue Plymouth van at 2110 Harrison Road and developed Daniel Castro as a possible suspect. The sheriff’s office said he and his mother had made attempts to move and hide the van after the shooting, but detectives found it.
The sheriff’s office is continuing its search and investigation. Anyone with information about the investigation or the location of Daniel Castro is asked to call Detective Adam Loflin at 704-216-8686 or Lt. Chad Moose at 704-216-8687.