A woman selling food outside an apartment complex in southeast Houston was robbed at gunpoint last week, and the incident was captured on her cellphone as she livestreamed on TikTok.
Houston police later arrested Edgard Eliud Castillo, who now faces a charge of aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon.
Teresa has been selling food outside the apartment complex for the past four years. She said she typically gets up at 4 a.m. to prepare for work.
Last week, she said, a man approached her, ordered food and then demanded her money while threatening her with a gun.
The robbery was recorded on Teresa’s cellphone while she was livestreaming on TikTok. She said she had only started using TikTok eight days before the robbery.
Teresa said the experience has been difficult to process and that she is grateful she was not seriously hurt.
“Es muy difícil, me pongo a pensar lo que me iba a pasar. Gracias a Dios me salvé.”
In the recording, the man can be heard telling Teresa that it was a robbery and demanding money. He then threatened to shoot her if she tried to do anything.
“Yo le voy a tirar un balazo si empieza a hacer algo.”
Teresa pointed toward her phone, apparently trying to let the man know that she was livestreaming. She said the suspect did not seem to care.
She said she was in shock and did not know how to respond.
“Me quedé en shock, nunca me había pasado eso. Me quedé en blanco sin contestar, sin decir nada.”
The suspect then demanded Teresa’s gold chain.
“Deme la cadena, por favor.”
Teresa said the demand made her even more afraid. She worried the man would kill her because she had nothing else to give him.
“Una de esas sí me va a matar. Si me pide más, ya no lo tengo, ¿qué le voy a dar?”
The man eventually ran away and got into a car, leaving Teresa shaken by what had happened.
“Me quedé traumada.”
Teresa called police, and investigators made an arrest a few days later. HPD arrested Castillo, who now faces an aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon charge. The broadcast also showed a previous mugshot of Castillo.
Despite the arrest, Teresa said she remains afraid. She has not returned to selling food since the robbery because she worries someone could come along and rob her again.
“Da miedo, siento que en cualquier momento va a salir alguien más.”
HPD is investigating. The broadcast said Castillo was arrested last week for evading arrest and possession of a controlled substance. It also said he has a criminal history dating back to 2008.
Teresa said that despite the fear left by the robbery, she is grateful she was not injured and survived.
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