A Guatemalan national has pleaded guilty to selling narcotics to an undercover officer and selling tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) gummies that resulted in the hospitalization of more than 12 middle school students.
In March 2025, Wilmer Castillo Garcia sold THC gummies on Instagram, which ultimately led to 12 students from William Floyd Middle School ingesting them, all of whom went to Peconic Bay Hospital after falling ill.
Then, on May 5, 2025, and May 12, 2025, Castillo Garcia sold cocaine and marijuana to an undercover law enforcement officer.
On August 14, 2025, Castillo Garcia was arraigned before Acting Supreme Court Justice Anthony Senft, Jr., and ordered that the defendant be released on his own recognizance during the pendency of this case because the charges are considered non-bail eligible under current New York State law.
On October 4, 2025, while this case was pending, Castillo Garcia was arrested by the Canada Border Services Agency at the Lewiston Bridge in Lewiston, New York, while he was attempting to flee the United States. He was subsequently placed into the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and brought to the Batavia Federal Detention Facility in Batavia, New York, for removal proceedings. At the request of the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office, ICE returned Castillo Garcia to Suffolk County upon a judicial writ to face the charges contained in the indictment.
On July 23, 2026, Castillo Garcia pleaded guilty to Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree, a Class B felony, and Endangering the Welfare of a Child, a Class A misdemeanor, before Senft.
“This defendant illegally sold cocaine, marijuana, and THC gummies. The gummies then got into the hands of children, which led to dozens being hospitalized,” said Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney. “Because the charges are non-bail eligible under current New York law, prosecutors could not ask for bail when the defendant was arrested, so the defendant fled to the Canadian border in an attempt to evade prosecution in this case. With the vigilance of our federal and Canadian partners, he was apprehended and was brought back to Suffolk County, where he has been held accountable for his crimes.”
Castillo Garcia is due back in court on September 10, 2026, and is expected to be sentenced to two years in prison, followed by two years of post-release supervision. ICE currently has a detainer on Castillo Garcia to take custody of him after he serves his prison sentence.