How PBSO tied wife's 2023 murder to husband who fled to El Salvador
PBSO extradited Jose Castellon Jimenez from El Salvador to face a murder charge after his wife, Eulalia, was found dead at a Lake Worth train station.
- Jose Castellon Jimenez was extradited from El Salvador to face a first-degree murder charge in Palm Beach County.
- He is accused of killing his wife, Eulalia Castellon, and leaving her body in a van at a Tri-Rail station in October 2023.
- Authorities allege Castellon Jimenez fled to his native El Salvador the day after his wife was last seen alive.
- Investigators tracked him using cellphone data, security footage, and flight records from Miami International Airport.
Jose Castellon Jimenez bought breakfast for his family before leaving his Lake Worth Beach residence on the morning of Oct. 21, 2023. Then he left and never returned.
Authorities alleged he fled to his native El Salvador after killing his wife, Eulalia Castellon, and leaving her body in a blue Chevrolet van at the Lake Worth Beach Tri-Rail station.
Nearly three years later, Castellon Jimenez, 43, is back in Palm Beach County to face a first-degree murder charge following his extradition from El Salvador, the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office reported.
Deputies booked him into the county jail on May 13. One day later, Circuit Judge Donald Hafele ordered that Castellon Jimenez be held without bail and assigned a public defender to represent him. As a matter of policy, the county Public Defender's Office does not comment on active cases.
Woman found dead at Tri-Rail station was mom, worked with kids
Castellon Jimenez has been in custody since April 2024, when authorities in El Salvador arrested him. Local and federal authorities coordinated his return to the U.S.
Relying on cellphone data and security-camera footage, investigators found Eulalia Castellon's decomposing body the afternoon of Oct. 22, 2023, covered by boxes inside a van parked at the Tri-Rail station near Lake Worth Road.
She was reported missing the day before after a relative described last seeing her on the night of Oct. 20. Sheriff's investigators say Castellon's body had been in the van for more than 24 hours. The Palm Beach County Medical Examiner's Office ruled her death as a homicide by unspecified means.
According to a published report, Castellon, 32, had three young daughters and devoted her time to helping underserved students in a Spanish-speaking community.
Detectives learned through witness statements that Castellon Jimenez and Castellon had a tumultuous relationship.
A relative told investigators that Castellon Jimenez had made repeated threats to kill Eulalia and return to El Salvador during their fights. The sheriff's office had gone to their residence on Oct. 13 after receiving a call about a domestic dispute but left without making an arrest.
Investigators conducted a separate search for Castellon Jimenez on Oct. 22 after a family member reported him missing. Sheriff's investigators tracked a white Ford van he also owned to a parking lot at Miami International Airport.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection told the sheriff's office that Castellon Jimenez had flown to El Salvador from Miami on Oct. 21 with a ticket he had purchased that morning, hours after he bought breakfast for his family.
Julius Whigham II covers northern Palm Beach County and public safety for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at [email protected] and follow him on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, at @JuliusWhigham. Help support our work: Subscribe today.