Story by Ethan
On April 7th, 2026, the arrest of Deanna DiCastro, age 39, and Gilliam Cordero, age 38, was announced by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg Jr.. Deanna DiCastro and Gilliam Cordero were charged with first-degree Robbery, third-degree Promoting Prostitution, and Sex Trafficking of a Child. The arrest and charges against Deann Di Castro and Gilliam Cordero were a result of an investigation handled by Detective Harrison Graf of the NYPD 9th Precinct Detective Squad, and Captain Alex Sypniewskia of the Rome, New York Police Department.
According to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, both defendants have been dating for the past four years during which they were alleged to have ran a prostitution scheme that involved a robbery at gunpoint and sex trafficking a child. On October 8th, 2025, Deanna DiCastro created an account on Megapersonals in order to use it to promote and advertise different women for prostitution, including one underaged female. Both defendants would take part in organizing and managing various prostitution encounters throughout both Manhattan and Bronx, New York. Communication between the girls and the defendants transpired over text messages. One example of instructions for the underage girl included at least one instance to take a certain amount of money after sending various men up to a hotel room she was put in for prostitution services. On November 16th, 2026, it’s alleged that Deanna DiCastro identified someone for Gilliam Cordero to rob at gunpoint. Deanna DiCastro first obtained information pertaining to the victim and then after passing it on to Gilliam Cordero he robbed the victim at gunpoint demanding his belongings and threatening to shoot him if he didn’t obey. Most of the financial proceeds from this operation passed through Deanna DiCastro under multiple accounts. Deanna DiCastro was also able to obtain a firearm license with ten pistols registered to her due to her being a licensed peace officer. The defendants also had a vehicle registered to Deanna DiCastro that Gilliam Cordero operated for transporting women and girls.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office stated that the charges against Deanna DiCastro and Gilliam Cordero are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
