A Pennsylvania man accused of stabbing two Falls men — killing one of them — has been sentenced to more than two decades behind bars.
During a Friday morning hearing, Niagara County Court Judge John Ottaviano sentenced Dominique L. Castile, 36, of Centerville, Pennsylvania, to 22 years in state prison for his conviction on charges of first-degree manslaughter and second-degree assault in connection with a pair of stabbings that took place in the same apartment building in the 2200 block of LaSalle Avenue.
The attacks happened just five days apart on Dec. 27, 2022, and Jan. 1, 2023.
Castile pleaded guilty to the charges in an agreement with Niagara County prosecutors. He had faced a possible prison term of 25 years.
A Niagara County grand jury had indicted Castile on single counts of second-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder and first-degree assault. He originally pleaded not guilty to those charges.
In taking his plea, Castile admitted to stabbing to death Stefhon Hilson, 33, of the Falls, in the early morning hours of Jan. 1, 2023, and stabbing another victim, in the same apartment in the same building, five days earlier, on Dec. 27, 2022.
Falls Police Criminal Investigation Division (CID) detectives said they identified Castile as their prime suspect shortly after discovering Hilson’s body.
After issuing a bulletin to local law enforcement agencies, identifying Castile as a suspect in a homicide, Town of Amherst police contacted Falls investigators to tell them that they had Castile in custody. CID detectives said they believed that Castile was trying to flee from the area when he was stopped by Amherst Police, just hours after the Hilson homicide, for traffic violations.
Detectives, later, connected Castile to an attack on Dec. 28, 2022, where a 33-year-old man, staying in the same apartment as Hilson, was stabbed. That victim was rushed to the Erie County Medical Center in Buffalo, where he was treated and has since recovered from his wounds.
Niagara County District Attorney Brian Seaman called Castile “a menace” to the community. He also praised the work of Niagara Falls and Amherst police and First Assistant District Attorney Doreen Hoffmann and Assistant District Attorney David DeChellis, who prosecuted the case.