Arrest report in highway shooting details drug use

A man who shot his pregnant girlfriend and then was shot by Las Vegas police last week had taken drugs, according to his arrest report.

Jose Luis Castro Jr., a 29-year-old Arizona man, was shot and wounded Thursday afternoon after he fired at police officers and random motorists on an exit ramp from northbound Interstate 15 to westbound State Route 160, police said.

According to the report on Castro's arrest, he had taken cocaine and smoked marijuana while staying at a hotel room with three others, including his girlfriend, Beatriz Celleros.

The four had come to Las Vegas from Arizona to celebrate Castro's birthday, the report said.

Castro appeared "irrational and violent" after taking the drugs, according to the report. He accused his friends of working for the police and searched them for recording devices.

After Castro began acting paranoid, his friends attempted to drive him back to Arizona. During the trip, Castro began striking the others and grabbed a shotgun from the car, the report said.

Celleros was shot at least once. She was critically injured, but is expected to survive. No one else was injured by Castro.

Castro was treated at University Medical Center, then booked into the Clark County Detention Center on charges that include attempted murder with a deadly weapon.

William C. Gibbs, 43, a nine-year veteran of the department; and John B. Leith Jr., 41, an eight-year veteran of the department, were the officers who shot at Castro. It was unclear which officer struck the suspect.

Both officers were placed on routine administrative leave pending investigation into the shooting.

Contact reporter Mike Blasky at mblasky@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0283.