Ashburn CEO Accused of Killing Wife Out on Bond

An Ashburn man charged with the murder of his estranged wife in March was released Tuesday on bond.

Braulio M. Castillo, 43, of Ashburn, was granted a $2 million bond in May by Judge Burke McCahill. An inmate must pay 10 percent of the set amount to be released on bond.

Castillo, president and CEO of a Northern Virginia security company, was arrested April 1 and charged with first-degree murder for the March 19 killing of his estranged wife. The arrest occurred less than a year after Castillo faced fraud allegations for falsely claiming disabled-veteran status in a ploy to win contracts for his IT company, the Washington Business Journal reports.

Michelle Castillo’s body was found the following day when a neighbor reportedly called for a welfare check after the Castillos’ five children could not find their mother, the Loudoun Times reports. She was reportedly beaten and strangled before she was found hanging from the basement shower in what authorities called a staged suicide.

Prosecutors allege a neighbor’s surveillance video shows a person, later identified as Braulio Castillo, sneaking into and out of Michelle Castillo’s home.

Castillo appeared before court Monday for an arraignment and is due in court for another bond hearing Wednesday, July 30 at 4 p.m. According to the Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney, the state plans to make a motion to revoke his bond based on DNA evidence, WUSA9 reports.

Castillo’s trial before a jury is set for Sept. 15-26.