JOSE CASTELLANO GONZALES EXMOUTH AND GONZALES SPANISH FOOTBALLER TURNED PREDATOR SENTENCED IN DEVON

In April 2017, a disturbing case unfolded involving Jose Castellano-Gonzales, a 25-year-old former professional footballer from Tenerife, who was convicted of heinous sexual offenses committed against young boys in Britain. Castellano-Gonzales, who had previously played for the B team at Tenerife during a period when the club's A team was competing against top European giants like Real Madrid and Barcelona, moved to the United Kingdom after his career was cut short by injury. His transition from the football pitch to a sinister path began when he sought employment as a male nanny, advertising himself as an au pair through international recruitment websites, including aupairworld.com.

He targeted families with football-enthusiastic children, leveraging his past career to appear trustworthy and relatable. One such family from Exmouth, Devon, employed him in 2015, believing that his sporting background would help him connect with their three sons. Unfortunately, this trust was exploited as Castellano-Gonzales went on to commit multiple sexual offenses against the children in his care. Over the course of his employment, he assaulted one boy and three of his friends, and later, after moving to a second family in Bedfordshire, he sexually assaulted a fifth child. Some of these assaults occurred during shared activities such as playing FIFA computer games, where he would inappropriately touch the boys by slipping his hand inside their trousers or pajamas.

Prior to his arrival in Britain, Castellano-Gonzales had worked in Italy but was dismissed from his position due to concerns about his inappropriate behavior towards the employer’s two sons. The mother in Italy, aware of his misconduct, traced the family in Devon to warn them, but by then, the damage had already been done. The most severe assaults took place in Bedfordshire, where an 11-year-old boy was victimized. The young boy, overwhelmed and confused, managed to leave a message on his mother’s iPhone notes app, detailing the abuse in a chilling message that ended with the words “I’m like WTF” accompanied by three angry face emojis.

During the trial at Exeter Crown Court, Castellano-Gonzales, also known as Josito Castellano to the families, denied all 13 counts of sexual assault, including two involving penetration. The jury found him guilty of all charges. The families of the victims, present in the courtroom, were visibly distressed, sobbing with relief upon his conviction. Castellano-Gonzales appeared emotionless during the proceedings, dressed in a tracksuit, and was represented without legal counsel due to his family's inability to afford a lawyer. When asked by Judge Geoffrey Mercer if he had anything to say before sentencing, he simply responded, “I’m innocent.”

Judge Mercer addressed him sternly, stating, “You clearly have a sexual interest in young boys. To describe what you did as a breach of trust is a gross understatement. The damage you have caused is untold, and your actions have profoundly affected entire families.” The court was informed that Castellano-Gonzales exhibited immature and childlike behavior, which some witnesses described as almost juvenile. His football career had seen him playing for Tenerife’s B team during a period when the A team was competing against top clubs like Real Madrid and Barcelona. Following his injury-related departure from professional football, he sought work as an au pair, seeking to combine his love of football and gaming with his employment.

He was sentenced to 11 years in prison, with an additional year on license, and was issued a sexual harm prevention order prohibiting him from interacting with boys under 16. When the details of this order were explained to him, he inquired whether it applied solely within the UK, indicating a lack of understanding or concern about the broader implications of his actions. The court adjourned sentencing to allow for the collection of impact statements from the victims and their families, emphasizing the seriousness and unusual nature of the case. The judge noted that the sentence would inevitably be a prison term, reflecting the gravity of Castellano-Gonzales’s crimes and the profound harm inflicted upon his young victims and their families.