A North Massapequa man was indicted for raping and murdering his 25-year-old sister-in-law in their shared home while his wife was out of town.
On June 29 at approximately 8:40 a.m., the Nassau County Police Department received a 911 call to a multi-family home on North Oak Street in North Massapequa. When police arrived, they found Joseph Horner sitting outside on the stoop and located 25-year-old Victoria Castle, the defendant’s sister-in-law, inside the ground-floor apartment lying naked and unresponsive on her bed.
The victim was taken to St. Joseph’s Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Castle had been living in a separate apartment in the same house as Horner and her sister since 2024.
Earlier that morning, at approximately 7:45 a.m., Horner allegedly asked the victim to help him move a piano to his upstairs apartment that he shared with his wife. After moving the piano, he returned to the victim’s ground-floor apartment to retrieve the bench.
Once downstairs, Horner allegedly attacked the victim from behind and placed her in a chokehold until her body went limp. He then allegedly removed the victim’s clothes, placed her on her bed, and raped her.
An autopsy was conducted and revealed that the victim’s cause of death was determined to be manual strangulation.
Horner, 27, was arrested by the Nassau County Police Department’s Homicide Squad on June 29. He was arraigned on July 29 before Judge Howard Sturim on grand jury indictment charges of Murder in the First Degree and two counts of Murder in the Second Degree (all Class A-I felonies); and two counts of Rape in the First Degree (a B violent felony).
“This vicious attack was the act of a deranged individual suffering from an unrequited love and sick lust dating back more than a decade,” said Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly. “Joseph Horner saw his chance when his wife was out of town, and he allegedly took it. Now, a bright young woman with a promising future is dead. Our thoughts remain with the Castle family as they continue to endure this indescribable pain and heartbreak and as we pursue justice for Victoria.”
Horner pleaded not guilty and was remanded. He is due back in court on August 19. If convicted, he faces up to life in prison without the possibility of parole.