Relatives ones said the 26-year-old had moved from Colombia to support his young daughter.
WILMINGTON, Calif. — A father who relatives said moved from Colombia to build a better life for his 5-year-old daughter was killed during his 26th birthday celebration at a Wilmington pizza restaurant, police and loved ones said.
The May 9 shooting at Red West Pizza drew public attention because the man killed was not described as the aggressor. Police said he was trying to stop a fight between two women when a man fired a gun, striking him and another man inside the restaurant.
Family and friends had gathered at the Pacific Coast Highway restaurant to celebrate the young father’s birthday. In interviews and a fundraising page, loved ones described a happy gathering that changed without warning. They said he was surrounded by people who cared about him when the fight broke out. Police said he moved toward the dispute to break it up. He was then shot by a male suspect. Maria Rondan, identified in local coverage as his girlfriend, said, “They robbed us of someone. They took somebody’s father, son and I just don’t understand why.” The killing left his relatives speaking about both his final act and the future his daughter would face without him.
The man was identified by family and several news reports as Andres Castellas or Andres Castellano. A later report citing the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the victim as Jorbin Castellanos Aguilera, 26. Available reports do not explain the name difference, but they describe the same shooting at Red West Pizza, 614 W. Pacific Coast Highway, on the evening of May 9. Loved ones said he had been in the United States for about three years. They said he came from Colombia with hopes of providing for his daughter and making a stable life. Rondan said he was the kind of person who could make others feel special.
The police account places the fatal moment inside a fast-moving disturbance. At 5:51 p.m., officers were sent to Red West Pizza after shots were fired. Police said two women had been fighting when the 26-year-old intervened. A male suspect then fired several rounds. The 26-year-old was fatally wounded. Another man in his 20s, described in reports as a restaurant employee, was also shot and taken to a hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening. Officials initially said the shooter fled on foot. The events that led the women to fight, and the relationship between the shooter and the people involved, were not immediately clear.
For loved ones, the account of him stepping in matched the way they described him. Michelle Costa, who knew him, said he was peaceful and did not like violence. “He was a great man. He didn’t deserve this at all,” she said at a vigil outside the restaurant. Costa said the shooting happened quickly and that she tried to help him afterward. She also remembered him as someone who made people laugh and brought energy into a room. The vigil drew mourners to the place where the birthday party had been held, turning the front of the restaurant into a memorial with candles, balloons and prayers.
The case also unsettled people who knew Red West Pizza as a family restaurant. A nearby resident told local television that children are often inside and that it was scary to see a family moment become violent. The restaurant sits in Wilmington, a Los Angeles neighborhood near the harbor and industrial corridors, but also near homes and small businesses where families gather. Police blocked off the area around the restaurant after the shooting. News helicopter footage showed officers around the business and a person being placed in handcuffs, though early reports did not immediately establish whether that person was the shooter.
Public reports on the investigation developed over several days. Initial accounts said the shooter was on the loose and described him as a Hispanic man in his early to mid-20s. NBC Los Angeles reported that police later detained a possible suspect for questioning but could not confirm an arrest the night of the shooting. CBS Los Angeles later reported that a man had been taken into custody in connection with the case. Available reports did not provide the man’s name, a criminal charge, a court date or a statement from prosecutors. The lack of a full public filing update left relatives and the neighborhood with only partial answers.
Investigators still had several central questions to resolve in public. They had to determine what caused the fight between the women, where the shooter was before he fired, whether he had any connection to the women, and whether the birthday celebrant had any interaction with him before the shots. Detectives also had to account for the second victim’s injuries, any surveillance video from the restaurant or nearby businesses, and statements from patrons and employees who were present. The medical examiner identification added another official record to the case, but it did not answer the motive questions.
For now, the story of the man killed was being carried by relatives, friends and a vigil outside the restaurant, while the legal case remained incomplete in public reports. The next key development would be a formal police or court update naming a suspect and stating what charges, if any, have been filed.
Author note: Last updated June 3, 2026.