Cops: Riverhead man busted for stealing gun, criminal sale of controlled substance

A Riverhead man was cuffed on Monday after he was caught stealing a gun and found to be selling narcotics, police said.

According to Riverhead Police, Edgar J. Castillo, 26, of Riverhead, was arrested at 2:40 a.m. after police responded to a report of larceny from a vehicle parked at Peconic Bay Medical Center. The owner of the vehicle said that an unknown individual had entered the vehicle and removed a Glock model 23. 40 caliber handgun, police said.

Further investigation by the Riverhead detective division led to the arrest of Castillo and recovery of the weapon involved, police said.

A separate investigation conducted by the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office East End Drug Task Force led to Castillo being charged with criminal sale of a controlled substance in the third degree, a felony, in reference to an ongoing investigation within the Riverhead area. He was also charged with grand larceny in the fourth degree, a felony.

The East End Drug Task Force is a multi-jurisdictional drug enforcement unit funded by the office of Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota. The task force includes detectives, police officers and law enforcement personnel from departments including the New York State Police, Suffolk County Police, Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office, Suffolk County Department of Probation, Southampton Town Police, Riverhead Police Department, East Hampton Town Police Department, Southampton Village Police Department, Southold Police Department, DEA, Homeland Security and the Suffolk County District Attorney Investigators.

Castillo was held for arraignment and subsequently transferred to the Suffolk County Correctional Facility in Riverhead in lieu of $30,000.00 cash bail, police said.