WFAA
May 8, 2014
Debe Castro was an in-patient at The Medical Center of Plano in January 2013, preparing for a heart procedure. Medicated but conscious, she said her nurse — Wilson Karago — came to her bed in the middle of the night.
“He woke me up. He kissed me. He said, ‘You kiss, but you don’t tell.’ Something to that nature when he woke me up,” Castro recalled. “And I said, ‘Whoa, what are you doing here?’ And that’s when things escalated. The rape started.”
The day she was discharged, records show, Castro immediately went to Plano police to report the rape.
She had DNA evidence leading investigators to draw Karago’s blood. The DNA matched. Police said a Collin County grand jury indicted Karago.
But when it came time to arrest Karago, he had already fled the United States. He was back in his native Kenya, and that country will not extradite accused criminals to America.
So, without an arrest, this is still considered an active case. That means law enforcement won’t release any records.
It’s as if nothing ever happened.
“[Plano Police] had every opportunity, I feel, for him to have been picked up, especially because he was on a visa,” Castro said. “And nothing, to my knowledge, was ever done.”
Plano police declined to comment on camera. A spokesperson said the department understands Castro’s frustration, but this was a complicated case, and that’s why it took nine months to bring it to the grand jury.
Mike Sawicki is a Dallas attorney who is not involved in this case, but has handled similar cases involving patients who were sexually assaulted in hospitals.
“A warning sign can be if that nurse has moved several times in the past and doesn’t have a really good explanation for why,” Sawicki said.
- In 2007, Karago was licensed in Indiana.
- Later, in 2007, Pennsylvania granted him a license.
- Then, in 2010, Karago popped up with a license in California.
- In 2010, Karago finally arrived in Texas.
The Texas Board of Nursing has since revoked his nurses’ license for raping Castro.
“Are they moving because they want to see the world? Or are they moving because they’ve had a problem in X or Y facility and need to get away?” Sawicki asked.
The Medical Center of Plano declined to comment on camera, but provided this statement:
“The health of our patients is paramount and we do not tolerate behavior that jeopardizes their safety. As a matter of process we take various steps, including educational, employment and criminal background checks, in an attempt to determine that all of our employees are qualified and capable of providing high-quality care to our patients.”
Castro, who has not sued The Medical Center of Plano, said she is disappointed with its overall response.