The Roblox developer arrested by the FBI is Arnold Castillo, also known as Jadon Shedletsky or DoctorRofatnik. He is known for creating multiple Roblox games including a popular Sonic The Hedgehog knockoff called Sonic Eclipse Online.
Why was Arnold Castillo arrested?
On July 29, 2022, Arnold Castillo was federally charged with child sexual abuse crimes. An investigation had found that in February 2022 he groomed an underage girl from Indiana and in May 2022 paid for an Uber to drive her to his New Jersey home, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of Indiana. Investigators recovered the minor from Castillo’s residence and reunited her with her mother. Castillo faces up to life in prison and a $250,000 fine on each of two charges.
As documented in a thorough 12-minute video by YouTube user Ruben Sim, accusations of sexual misconduct by Castillo have been made since 2020. According to The Guardian, a minor called Rachel (name changed in the piece) was a moderator of Sonic Eclipse Online and claims that she suffered abuse from Castillo, leaving the development team in early 2020. Her friends created a lengthy 56-page document on Google Docs (also available on The Internet Archive) that compiles numerous screenshots of Discord conversations between Castillo (who calls himself “Dead Inside Memphis” or “Alive Inside Memphis”) and Rachel, as well as other users, over a two-year period.
Near the beginning of the video, Ruben Sim shows a screenshot of Castillo claiming that he was Jadon Shedletsky (or Jacob Shedletsky), a supposed brother of former Roblox Creative Director John Shedletsky. An FBI affidavit of the case (which we’ve seen) states that during his arrest Castillo informed law enforcement that the names “Jacob Shedletsky” and “Jadon Shedletsky” were “pseudonyms” and neither were his true name. He also claimed he was 22 years old, but it is the FBI’s belief that “Castillo is likely older than what he is claiming.”
Castillo, who was better known at DoctorRofatnik at the time, was terminated from the Roblox platform in late 2020. Sonic Eclipse Online was deleted on December 27, 2020 after Sega demanded Roblox remove the game for infringing its copyright.
