Juan Soldado

Who was Juan Soldado?

Juan Castillo Morales, known by many as Juan Soldado, was a convicted rapist and murderer who later became a folk saint to many in northwestern Mexico and in the southwestern United States. A private in the Mexican army, Castillo was executed on February 17, 1938 for the rape and murder of Olga Camacho Martínez, an eight-year-old girl from Tijuana, Baja California. His adherents believe that he was falsely accused of the crime and have appealed to his spirit for help in matters of health, criminal problems, family matters, crossing the U.S.-Mexico border and other challenges of daily life.