He secretly made child porn. Now the ex-teacher admits raping boys years ago

A former Granger teacher added to his criminal record this week by admitting that he sexually assaulted young boys.

Stephen J. Castilleja, 28, now has pleaded guilty to a total of seven sex crimes.

The pleas in Benton County Superior Court came two weeks after he was sentenced in federal court for making child pornography and were part of a global resolution.

Castilleja has been in custody since summer 2016, after an investigation into photos and videos seized from his family’s Prosser home revealed the sexual assaults and child porn.

He disclosed during the search that he had taken pictures of children.

One illicit video found on an external hard drive was recorded beneath a desk in a school classroom with other children present, court documents said.

This week, Castilleja entered pleas to two counts of first-degree child rape and one charge of first-degree child molestation.

After the allegations came to light, the first-grade teacher’s employment contract was not renewed for the 2016-17 school year.

Prosecutors said previously that the sexual assault victims were not students in Castilleja’s class at Roosevelt Elementary School. Castilleja himself was a young teen when he raped one of the boys.

He faces a recommended 26 1/2-year minimum sentence for the child rapes and 16 1/2 years minimum for the molestation. Sentencing is Dec. 6.

Once those cases are wrapped up, he will be transferred to federal custody to serve the sentences along with a 27-year term that was ordered on Oct. 31 in U.S. District Court.

That sentence was for four counts of producing child pornography.

In addition to lifetime supervision, Castilleja will have to register as a sex offender and undergo a sexual deviancy evaluation and follow the recommended treatment.

Documents say he knew he had a problem over a 15-year period — watching child pornography up to 10 to 15 minutes daily — but he did not seek help.

Castilleja was employed by the Prosser School District from 2009-14, and used to be a full-time staff member — and later an occasional volunteer —with the Prosser branch of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Benton and Franklin Counties.

This story was originally published November 16, 2017 at 6:24 PM with the headline "He secretly made child porn. Now the ex-teacher admits raping boys years ago."