Judge’s son accused of murder in Turlock claimed he protected ‘Most Interesting Man’

Testimony began Tuesday in a preliminary hearing for a retired Stanislaus County judge’s son, who is accused of killing a man in Turlock, firing a gun at two Merced County Sheriff’s Deputies and nearly running over a Merced police officer.

Kevin William Mayhew, the 41-year-old son of retired Judge William Mayhew, is accused of murder in the Oct. 31, 2016, shooting of Juy Anthony Gastelo. The 30-year-old man was gunned down at Mayhew’s North Thor Street home.

The defendant also is facing three counts of attempted murder and evading police in a 44-mile pursuit in March 2017 that began in Turlock and lasted just more than an hour before it ended in Merced.

Mayhew has chosen to legally represent himself.

The defendant, who used a wheelchair to enter and exit the courtroom, was assisted in court by defense attorney John Hillebrand. The attorney, from time to time, would suggest questions for witnesses testifying and objections for Mayhew.

Turlock Police Detective Jason Tosta on Tuesday afternoon testified that Mayhew said Gastelo broke into his home. Mayhew told the detective that he was asleep on his couch and was awakened by a noise to find Gastelo holding a knife in right hand and standing about 10 feet away.

Throughout questioning, Mayhew maintained that Gastelo already was holding the knife when he first saw him, according to Tosta.

Tosta said in court that Mayhew said he fired two shots at Gastelo, who retreated toward the back of the house as Mayhew fired more shots. Mayhew initially claimed he fired all the shots as he stood in the living room.

“It didn’t make sense to me that he fired these rounds from the living room,” Tosta said on the witness stand.

Stanislaus County forensic pathologist Sung-Ook Baik testified Tuesday that Gostelo suffered six gunshot wounds: one in his buttocks, one in his thigh and one in his leg.

Tosta questioned Mayhew at the Turlock Police Department shortly after the deadly shooting. Mayhew was made aware of his rights, and he was told he could end the interview and leave whenever he wanted.

When Tosta asked Mayhew whether he advanced toward the retreating Gastelo as he continued to fire his gun, Mayhew stopped the interview and declined to answer any other questions without his attorney present.

Tosta said it was Mayhew who called him and asked for another interview, which was held Nov. 21, 2016. The detective testified that Mayhew had been “very cooperative” from the beginning of his investigation.

“He seemed like he wanted to come down and tell his side of the story,” Tosta said.

The detective said Mayhew claimed he worked as a private military contractor for an international firm, which Tosta confirmed was not true. He also claimed he once worked as a security guard protecting the actor who portrayed “The Most Interesting Man in the World” in Dos Equis beer commercials.

“He appeared to be embellishing what he did and how he did it, and how he could carry a .50 caliber machine gun,” Tosta explained in court.

Tosta testified that Mayhew changed the degree of darkness in his home during the shooting to fit his narrative. He said Mayhew would claim it was dark in the house, then he would claim he could see Gastelo’s brown eyes and the surprised expression on his face.

The detective said Mayhew’s choice of words was odd while describing how he pulled out a .45 caliber handgun from a holster and fired it at Gastelo.

“His term was ‘I deployed my weapons system,’” Tosta said on the witness stand. “I thought that was odd that he used that terminology.”

On Oct. 25, 2016, Mayhew reported his Thor Street home had been burglarized of items including 15 rifles, three handguns and a shotgun. None of the guns had actually been stolen; all were recovered, most of them from his vehicle following the shootout in Merced, according to an arrest affidavit filed in court to support his arrest warrant.

About five months after the deadly shooting, detectives searched Mayhew’s Thor Street home. Turlock police officials have said officers tried to pull over Mayhew, but he drove away from his parents’ home in a car full of guns.

In the end of the chase into Merced, Mayhew got out of the car and fired a gun at two deputies, according to the affidavit., and he nearly ran over the police officer who tried to use spike strips to disable his vehicle.

Tosta’s testimony in the preliminary hearing is expected to continue Wednesday in Stanislaus Superior Court. At the end of the hearing, Judge Robert Westbrook will decide whether there’s enough evidence for Mayhew to stand trial.

This story was originally published March 19, 2019 at 6:03 PM.