Palmdale man found guilty of putting his semen into water bottle of co-worker in O.C.

An Orange County worker was convicted Monday of placing his semen into a female co-worker’s water bottle and food jar and onto her computer equipment.

Orange County Superior Court Judge Kathleen Roberts found Stevens Millancastro, a Palmdale resident, guilty of multiple counts of misdemeanor assault and battery and determined that he committed the crimes for sexual purposes.

During the trial, Deputy District Attorney Laila Nikaien alleged that Millancastro, 30, was obsessed with his co-worker, and began to stare at her incessantly after she turned him down for a date. The woman asked her boss to tell Millancastro to stop, and when that didn’t work filed a formal HR complaint, the prosecutor said.

The woman arrived to work several times to find a cloudy substance in her half-full water bottles. Her boss agreed to set up a surveillance camera facing her desk. When she came in the office another morning to find a “milky white substance” on her keyboard, the boss looked over the surveillance footage.

Based on the footage, police determined that Millancastro waited until the woman left, then smeared the content of tissues on her keyboard and mouse. Investigators also found Millancastro’s semen in her water bottle and a bottle of honey she used with her tea daily.

During her testimony, the woman said Millancastro made her feel “very, very uncomfortable, and said she was “disgusted” to find semen in her personal items and work space.

Millancastro’s attorney, Michael Morrison, didn’t deny his client’s actions, describing them as “highly inappropriate behavior.” Instead, the defense attorney argued that Millancastro was retaliating against the woman due to the formal complaint she made against him, not acting out of sexual gratification.

Millancastro was angry, believing he was suddenly at risk of losing his job or a promotion, and wanted revenge, the defense attorney said.

Millancastro opted for a bench trial, so a judge rather than jury determined his guilt. Prosecutors said the crimes happened in La Palma in November 2016 and January 2017.

Millancastro is scheduled to return to court for sentencing on Oct. 6, court records show. He faces up to two years and six months in prison. The judge’s determination that he committed the crimes for sexual purposes means he will also be required to register as a sex offender.

Source: Orange County Register