Anaheim man arrested, accused of trying to pay for sex with a child

SANTA ANA, Calif. (FOX 11/ CNS) - A 29-year-old security guard accused of attempting to arrange to have sex with a 4-year-old girl was taken into custody Wednesday in Anaheim on his way to work.

Nicolas Ryan Castillo, who has been living with his fiancee and her family in Anaheim for the past few weeks, was arrested on suspicion of solicitation of sex with a minor, said Santa Ana police Cpl. Anthony Bertagna.

His arrest culminated a monthlong undercover investigation which started after a Santa Ana police informant alerted investigators to allege that Castillo approached him looking for a 4-year-old child to have sex with, Bertagna said.

Castillo allegedly claimed he had done it in the past and wanted to speak to the mother of the child, Bertagna said. He said a Santa Ana detective posed as a mom and carried on a dialogue with Castillo via text and email for the past month.

Castillo allegedly said he was willing to pay $700 for two separate rendezvous with the fictional girl or $500 to spend the night with the child, Bertagna said.

Detectives served search warrants this morning at Castillo's residence in Anaheim and at his parents' home in Yorba Linda, where he was living previously, and concluded they had enough evidence to make an arrest, Bertagna said. Police collected computers and hard drives, which will be examined with the help of the FBI, he said.

Police suspect there may be more victims and note that Castillo lived next door to a daycare center in Anaheim, and across the street from an elementary school in Yorba Linda, Bertagna said.

From Phil Shuman:

The way Police described it, in such monotonous tones, it almost sounded routine but of course it's anything but. A 29-year-old security guard living with his fiance in Anaheim was arrested this morning on suspicion of soliciting sex with a minor, a four year old girl! What's worse, the allegation is that he was negotiating with the little girl's mother for sexual acts with her, even talked money for spending the night.

What he didn't know was the ''mother'' was actually a detective, playing a role, trading texts, emails and phone calls. This went on for a month before this morning's arrest. Police believe there are other potential victims out there, as the suspect apparently told the fake Mom ''he has done this before.'' The house he lived in with his parents in Yorba Linda is across from an elementary school, and the house he was staying at in Anaheim is literally next door to a day care center.

Chilling.