dougdeservesjustice
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note that Doug's real last name was Costello but when writing articles of his murder, it was misspelled as Castillo
This is a long post, but it's a very interesting case and I will not let it fall into obscurity like it has been for almost two decades.
So Doug was my dad's friend, and I don't know where to start so I'm here ig.
My dad and Doug both had been living in rural Eastern Oregon until one day in 2006 when Doug packed a few things on his motorcycle and drove to San Mateo California. He went to go live with his friend Shawn Weemes. For a while he just stayed in San Mateo, working in a manager position at a TGI Friday. Fast forward to January of 2008, Doug is closing the store. His girlfriend/fiance usually came in to visit, but that night he was working late and she didn't. He didn't come home that night, and in the morning Doug was found by a daytime manager dead on the store floor. At first the police department thought he had been shot, but it was discovered later that he had died of blunt force trauma. The even sadder part of this was that he was planning on marrying his girlfriend, they were planning on shopping for a promise ring, and she was pregnant with Doug's child (she unfortunately had a miscarriage after his death). That's what is making me want to solve this case so badly, he was such a sweet guy and he didn't deserve to die that way. My dad and everyone around him describes him as an angel on earth, and he was taken from us far too soon. Anyway, the San Mateo Police Department was very iffy on a lot of the details surrounding what happened. They never said where in the building he was found, they never said if there was surveillance in the building [after speaking to a former employee I can say there were no cameras IN the building, but there was cameras in the Hillsdale Mall and it was also right next to a train station which also had cameras, suggesting there may have been video evidence of someone entering the building], and when a police spokesperson was asked if there were any possible suspects, they said "we are not currently in the position to rule out any person". They never said if there was any DNA evidence either, and they never said if a murder weapon was found. They said was that it was a suspected attempted robbery gone wrong. All im saying is that if someone is dressed for a robbery and then kills someone, there's gonna be some sort of DNA evidence. Marji Fields, a person who frequented the store, said that over the past 6 months there had been some 20 and 21 year olds coming in and having altercations. Doug was a manager, which would mean he would have been the one to break up the fights. I've personally ruled out this theory, but since so little was said by SMPD, there's really no way to conclusively and confidently say it wasn't any of the boys that were fighting there.
Hi so i got part of that wrong and now I have even more questions. The article I read states that "Waiter Akeem Holland said he worked the night shift at the restaurant Sunday and saw four employees still in the restaurant when he left at 2:30 a.m." when did the others go home because Doug was found at 5:00 AM?? That's a VERY small window of time for several employees to go home, and then a murder to occur.
<modsnip - not an approved source>
www.montereyherald.com
www.smdailyjournal.com
I recommend reading the articles because they do a much better job explaining than I do
I reached out to the San Mateo Daily Journals chief editor to see if any reporters would be interested in covering the case. He was helpful and kind, so shout out to him lol. He told me that a reporter is interested, and that she will reach out to me soon. This doesn't mean that there's a 100% chance of it getting covered, but a reporter being interested in the case is the first step it takes. If his story can be ran in the papers, then perhaps someone in San Mateo knows who did it, or who could've done it and can reach out to SMPD with a lead!!
<modsnip>
Help is needed and ANYTHING could be the missing link to this case, all eyes on Doug Costellos case!!
This is a long post, but it's a very interesting case and I will not let it fall into obscurity like it has been for almost two decades.
So Doug was my dad's friend, and I don't know where to start so I'm here ig.
My dad and Doug both had been living in rural Eastern Oregon until one day in 2006 when Doug packed a few things on his motorcycle and drove to San Mateo California. He went to go live with his friend Shawn Weemes. For a while he just stayed in San Mateo, working in a manager position at a TGI Friday. Fast forward to January of 2008, Doug is closing the store. His girlfriend/fiance usually came in to visit, but that night he was working late and she didn't. He didn't come home that night, and in the morning Doug was found by a daytime manager dead on the store floor. At first the police department thought he had been shot, but it was discovered later that he had died of blunt force trauma. The even sadder part of this was that he was planning on marrying his girlfriend, they were planning on shopping for a promise ring, and she was pregnant with Doug's child (she unfortunately had a miscarriage after his death). That's what is making me want to solve this case so badly, he was such a sweet guy and he didn't deserve to die that way. My dad and everyone around him describes him as an angel on earth, and he was taken from us far too soon. Anyway, the San Mateo Police Department was very iffy on a lot of the details surrounding what happened. They never said where in the building he was found, they never said if there was surveillance in the building [after speaking to a former employee I can say there were no cameras IN the building, but there was cameras in the Hillsdale Mall and it was also right next to a train station which also had cameras, suggesting there may have been video evidence of someone entering the building], and when a police spokesperson was asked if there were any possible suspects, they said "we are not currently in the position to rule out any person". They never said if there was any DNA evidence either, and they never said if a murder weapon was found. They said was that it was a suspected attempted robbery gone wrong. All im saying is that if someone is dressed for a robbery and then kills someone, there's gonna be some sort of DNA evidence. Marji Fields, a person who frequented the store, said that over the past 6 months there had been some 20 and 21 year olds coming in and having altercations. Doug was a manager, which would mean he would have been the one to break up the fights. I've personally ruled out this theory, but since so little was said by SMPD, there's really no way to conclusively and confidently say it wasn't any of the boys that were fighting there.
Hi so i got part of that wrong and now I have even more questions. The article I read states that "Waiter Akeem Holland said he worked the night shift at the restaurant Sunday and saw four employees still in the restaurant when he left at 2:30 a.m." when did the others go home because Doug was found at 5:00 AM?? That's a VERY small window of time for several employees to go home, and then a murder to occur.
<modsnip - not an approved source>
Worker found slain in eatery
SAN MATEO (AP) — Police say a day manager arrived for the morning shift at a San Mateo TGI Friday”s to find a slain employee on the floor. Police identified the victim as 36-year-old Do…
www.montereyherald.com
Search continues in TGI Friday's murder
San Mateo police are still searching for clues that may lead to a suspect or suspects that broke into a T.G.I. Friday's in January, killing a night employee during the
I recommend reading the articles because they do a much better job explaining than I do
I reached out to the San Mateo Daily Journals chief editor to see if any reporters would be interested in covering the case. He was helpful and kind, so shout out to him lol. He told me that a reporter is interested, and that she will reach out to me soon. This doesn't mean that there's a 100% chance of it getting covered, but a reporter being interested in the case is the first step it takes. If his story can be ran in the papers, then perhaps someone in San Mateo knows who did it, or who could've done it and can reach out to SMPD with a lead!!
<modsnip>
Help is needed and ANYTHING could be the missing link to this case, all eyes on Doug Costellos case!!
Last edited by a moderator:
