Missing 19-year-old reunites with family News Staff Tue, 05/07/2024 - 8:01 pm
- (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO | GPD) Castle was found by his family Tuesday, May 7 at an Amtrak station in Charleston, South Carolina. Ashton’s stepmother, Amber Rathmell Castle, has been providing updates regarding details of the case.
Thomas Wallner editor@grahamleader.com
After being located by Graham Police Department last week, Ashton Broderick Castle has reunited with his family and will be returning to Texas tomorrow.
Castle was found by his family Tuesday, May 7 at an Amtrak station in Charleston, South Carolina. Ashton’s stepmother, Amber Rathmell Castle, has been providing updates regarding details of the case.
“He was sitting in a cubby with his backpack and roller suitcase. His phone was stolen. He is not hurt physically besides bug bites all over, but mentally he will need a lot more counseling,” she said Wednesday, May 7. “He has been sleeping on park benches for the last two weeks and living among homeless encampments and has walked all over the city of Charleston.”
Castle, 19, left his home in the 100 block of Fawn Trail at 11:30 a.m. Monday, April 22. He was reported missing the following day and GPD requested any information regarding his disappearance.
Amber Castle said Ashton flew out of DFW at 11:36 p.m. April 22 with no bags, arrived at Las Vegas at 12:30 a.m. Tuesday, April 23 and then left at 8:39 a.m. and arrived at Charleston, South Carolina at 4:11 p.m. with luggage.
GPD closed the missing persons investigation due to the department researching leads regarding Castle's flight history. GPD Chief Brent Bullock said the department was able to track Ashton through agencies in those cities.
“We basically tracked him through systems with other agencies to Las Vegas, where he boarded a flight from DFW to Las Vegas. Then (he flew) from Las Vegas to Charleston, South Carolina,” Bullock said. “Working with the airport in Las Vegas (we determined) he was by himself making normal decisions and was never on the phone or anything, so it was not like somebody was coaching him or having him do something he didn’t want to do.”
Despite Castle no longer being on the missing persons list, Bullock said a welfare check was still being requested if he was located.
The department was contacted at 1 a.m. Friday, May 3 by Folley Beach South Carolina in reference to Castle. He was stopped while walking as a suspicious person. The two officers checked his welfare and reported he was “in good shape.” They advised GPD that Castle stated he was “fine and just seeing the world.”
Amber Castle thanked the community for the support offered in helping locate Ashton. She said the family will be heading Wednesday, May 8 to Fort Worth where Ashton will stay and recover.
“I want to thank everybody from the bottom of my heart for your thoughts and prayers and just wonderful kindness,” she said. “I am truly so blessed and we wouldn't have found him if it wasn't by the grace of God and everyone's prayers! God is so good! And I feel so blessed! Thank y'all so much. I couldn't have done this without all your love and support.”
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