Joseph Michael Castro

At around 5 a.m. this morning, Santa Barbara police arrested 20-year-old Joseph Castro — aka Grumps — for the murder of Kelly Hunt, gunned down February 19 in the 1000 block of Olive Street.

According to SBPD spokesperson Sgt. Riley Harwood, SWAT teams from the Santa Barbara Police Department and Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Office served two high-risk gang search warrants at residences on the 700 block of Cook Avenue and the 300 block of Cooper Road. Castro was apprehended at the Cook Avenue location, and is considered a Santa Barbara gang member, said Harwood. Hunt was a member of the Crazy Wino gang in Ventura.

Though Castro is currently being held at police headquarters, he’ll soon be booked into County Jail on charges of murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and participation in a criminal street gang, said Harwood. His bail will be set at $1.1 million. Police are still looking for additional suspects, and “due to the ongoing nature of this investigation additional details are being withheld,” said Harwood.

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