victims fight back

**kjlaw** · 08-08-07, 11:31 AM

Meraux man is being held in the St. John the Baptist Parish jail after he was trapped inside a vehicle that authorities say he was attempting to steal from a LaPlace grocery store's parking lot.
Authorities booked Julio Castro Jr., 53, 2005 Judy Drive, with theft, aggravated criminal damage to property and two counts of simple burglary following the botched theft of a Ford Explorer on Friday afternoon.
Sheriff's Office spokesman Maj. Mike Tregre said the vehicle's owner, who noticed Castro sitting in the front seat of her SUV hammering at the steering column with a hatchet, and a Kenner man barricaded the vehicle's doors and kept him there until deputies arrived. Tregre said the LaPlace woman physically held the driver's side door of the Explorer closed, while the Kenner man, who happened to be in the parking lot at the time, helped hold the passenger door.

As officers pulled into the parking lot, authorities say, Castro broke the vehicle's driver-side window with the hatchet, injuring the owner, a 54-year-old LaPlace woman.
Before getting into the Explorer about 12:30 p.m. Friday, authorities said, Castro stole two screwdrivers and a hatchet from an unlocked vehicle near the Stage department store in the 1400 block of Airline Highway.
Investigators think that Castro, armed with the screwdrivers and the hatchet, then walked through the parking lot and found the gold Explorer, also with unlocked doors, in front of Matherne's Supermarket. The owner of the Explorer told officers that she had just finished grocery shopping and was approaching the vehicle when she saw Castro inside the vehicle.
The woman's granddaughter had climbed into the back seat without realizing Castro was in the vehicle, Tregre said. The Kenner man was able to get the girl out, Tregre said.
The owner, who was injured from Castro shattering the window with a hatchet, was treated at the scene for minor cuts to her face, the report said.
Castro was taken to River Parishes Hospital in LaPlace and treated for minor injuries as well. He was released and booked.
Tregre said investigators think that Castro, who has been convicted on theft charges in the past, was attempting to steal the Explorer because of the evidence left behind from him hammering away at the vehicle's steering column.
Castro was also booked with possession of stolen things, two counts of resisting an officer and negligent injuring. He was being held in the Sherman Walker Correctional Facility in lieu of $39,500 bail.