LI Man Burglarized Home, Sexually Abused 4-Year-Old Asleep Inside: DA

BRENTWOOD, NY — A Brentwood man was indicted Wednesday for burglarizing a home and sexually abusing a 4-year-old girl while she slept in her bedroom, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said Wednesday.

Darwin Barbacastillo, 27, of Brentwood, was indicted for breaking into a home in Bay Shore, and sexually abusing the child, he said.

According to the investigation, on October 29, at about 8:00 a.m., Barbacastillo entered the home through a back door while the child and her family were sleeping inside, the DA said.

Video surveillance from inside the home shows Barbacastillo wandering around, testing the bedroom doors to see if they were locked, and looking inside the unlocked rooms, Tierney said.

Barbacastillo then entered the bedroom where the child and her 9-year-old sister were sleeping and began to sexually abuse the 4-year-old, causing her to wake up, the DA said.

Barbacastillo then fled the home, he added.

When the child's father woke up shortly thereafter, he found her and her sister in the hallway crying, and they told him what had happened, Tierney said. The father reviewed the home surveillance system, and recognized Barbacastillo as someone that he had previously met a couple of times through mutual friends, the DA said.

He then saw that the sexual abuse was also captured on video; Barbacastillo was arrested by police later that day, the DA said.

On Wednesday, Barbacastillo was arraigned on the indictment before County Court Judge Karen M. Wilutis on the following charges, Tierney said:

- Predatory sexual assault against a child, a felony

- first-degree criminal sexual act, a violent felony

- second-degree burglary as a sexually motivated felony

- first-degree sexual abuse, a violent felony

- endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor

Wilutis remanded Barbacastillo into custody during the pendency of the case; Barbacastillo
is due back in court on December 19, and he is being represented by Ian Fitzgerald, who did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

"This defendant allegedly invaded the privacy of a home to commit a heinous act of sexual abuse of a 4-year-old child," said Tierney."Children deserve the utmost protection, especially while they are in their own homes where they should feel safe. My office will do everything in its power to hold those who prey upon children accountable."