Reading Police and Berks County Detectives have arrested a city woman in connection with the 1993 death of a 2-year-old boy, District Attorney John Adams announced Wednesday.
Sandra Guadalupe-Castro, 57, of Reading, has been charged with first-degree and third-degree murder.
On January 8, 1993, the child was transported from 1049 Franklin Street to St. Joseph’s Hospital in Reading, where he was pronounced dead at 12:50 p.m. An autopsy determined he suffered multiple blunt impact injuries to the head and bruises at various stages of healing. The death was ruled a homicide by forensic pathologist Dr. Neil Hoffman.
Detectives conducted an extensive investigation in 1993, interviewing family members and others connected to the child. At the time of his death, the boy lived with his father and his father’s partner, Guadalupe-Castro. Despite efforts at the time, no charges were filed.
The case was reopened this year under the District Attorney’s Cold Case Initiative. Investigators re-interviewed witnesses and reviewed medical records and forensic findings. Dr. Hoffman confirmed the fatal injuries were inflicted shortly before the child’s death, which allowed detectives to narrow the timeline to the morning of January 8, 1993. Authorities determined the child was in the sole care of Guadalupe-Castro during those hours.
A criminal complaint was filed October 7, 2025, and Magisterial District Judge Carissa Johnson issued a warrant for Guadalupe-Castro’s arrest. She was taken into custody at her Reading residence the same day and transported to the Berks County Central Processing Center for arraignment.
Officials emphasized that an arrest is only an accusation and Guadalupe-Castro is presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
