Surveillance video captures fatal stabbing of Sultan teen

The Snohomish County Prosecutor's Office on Thursday released a chilling surveillance video that captures the beating and stabbing death of a teen in downtown Sultan in June.

Superior Court Judge Bruce Weiss ordered the release of the video over the objections of attorneys for several of the defendants who argued that it would jeopardize their clients' right to a fair trial and could incite gang retaliation. The victim, Antonio Marks, 17, and his attackers were believed to be members of rival gangs.

Several media outlets, including The Seattle Times, requested a copy of the video under the state's Public Records Act.

The judge said the defense has several remedies to address pretrial publicity, including questioning the pool of prospective jurors about their exposure to the case. Weiss also said that all of the suspects in the case have already been identified, charged and their names made public.

The Seattle Times is not posting the video on its Web site.

Kathy Best, the Times' managing editor with responsibility for seattletimes.com, praised the judge's ruling, but said showing the video doesn't advance the understanding of the crime or raise broader questions of public policy. She also noted that news accounts of the murder have already detailed the images caught by the surveillance camera.

The victim's mother, Angelina Reyes, of Marysville, appealed to the media to not air the video. In a statement released through the Snohomish County Prosecutor's Office, she said that viewing the murder of her son is "deeply traumatic."

Five teens have been charged with second-degree murder in the June 17 slaying — Marco Castillo, 19; his brother Adolfo Castillo, 16; Ana Cary Ayala Bustos, 16; Ivette Rico, 17; and Jaime Michel Santana, 16. All have pleaded not guilty. The juveniles are being tried as adults.

Their trials are set for late September through early November.

Over the past two years, the city of Sultan, population 4,500, installed almost two dozen video-surveillance cameras to try to reduce vandalism, loitering and property crimes in the city. The murder was caught by a camera installed outside a local chiropractor's office.

The video clearly shows an argument between the teens leading up to the attack. An individual identified as Marks appears to shout and walks toward five others, who are headed in the opposite direction. One youth then steps into the street, knocks Marks down with a single punch, and repeatedly pummels his head and body.

The others approach and appear to take turns kicking Marks.

Finally, one stabs Marks six times in the torso and delivers a kick to his head. The street quickly empties of people and one can be seen riding past the body on a bike.

Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Tobin Darrow said it is "very rare" for a surveillance video to capture a murder. Although the teenagers appear quite small and in the background of a starkly lit intersection, the surveillance tape clearly shows the moments leading up to the attack on Marks and the attack itself.

"It's very helpful to the prosecution to have the video," Darrow said.

Darrow said the teens are identifiable on the surveillance tape by their clothing.

Sheriff's deputies recovered a bloody knife and bloody clothing at the Castillo residence several blocks from downtown, according to charging documents.

A judge will still have to rule on the admissibility of the surveillance tape in the criminal cases.

Lynn Thompson: 206-464-8305 or lthompson@seattletimes.com