San Bernardino Swim Coach John Casillas Accused of Hiding Missing 16-Year-Old in His Room

San Bernardino swim coach John Casillas, 31 years old, was arrested on suspicion of concealment of a child from legal guardian with bail set at $50,000. A 16 year old who had been missing for weeks was finally found in the San Bernardino home of Castillo, the Apple Valley Police Department said.

The unidentified 16-year-old went missing from her home July 22, and detectives at the Apple Valley Station began searching for her, serving multiple search warrants and gathering evidence. Then They discovered the missing teen in Casillas’ bedroom. Apple Valley and Crimes Against Children Detectives said John knew the 16-year-old was being sought, but did not call the police to report he was in contact with her.

A GoFundMe page soliciting money for the search said the girl has been a competitive swimmer since the age of 6, most recently with a club team in Victorville, and is being recruited by universities.

Casillas was arrested at a local country club where he was giving swim lessons. He posted bail and was released Aug. 6. “John is employed as a swim instructor at several different swimming academies and has contact with many juveniles in the course of his employment,” authorities said in a news release.

Anyone with information is asked to contact detective Gus Garcia at the Apple Valley Station at -760-240-7400. Callers can remain anonymous and contact WeTip at 800-78CRIME or www.wetip.com.

Manly, Stewart & Finaldi has represented hundreds of child sexual abuse victims of teachers and coaches in California schools. We are also the lead attorneys representing Olympic athletes and victims of former US Olympic Women’s Gymnastics Team Doctor Larry Nassar and secured a $500 million settlement for our clients.   In each of these cases we have helped victims and families get justice by conducting a thorough investigation of the organization and the school . In many cases we have discovered that administrators and executives  know that the perpetrator was a danger to children and either did nothing or actively covered up the crimes.