WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Nearly one week after the deadly standoff with Winston-Salem police on Lockland Avenue, a man who was in the house when the chaos began is speaking out.
Paul Tesh said he was a housemate and friend of Edwin Joseph Castillo Jr. They lived together for about a year and a half.
"Joey was a very bright man," Tesh explained.
Three housemates made it out alive after the tense situation. Tesh said all four living in the house were like family. They called Castillo 'Joey.'
"The man I saw that day was not Joey Castillo," Tesh said. "He was a different man, I think Joey had mental health issues."
RELATED: Man in standoff with Winston-Salem police died from gunshot wound after exchange with officers
The Winston-Salem Police Department said Castillo shot at police and set fire to his shared house. Officers said they returned fire, killing him.
Tesh said the only way he can describe Castillo's actions, is as a 'psychotic break.'
"Were there any signs leading up to Wednesday that something like this could happen?" WFMY News 2's Jess Winters questioned.
"Not this chaotic, no," Tesh answered. "No signs at all, that’s what I guess is disturbing about it."
Tesh said Castillo attacked him.
"He picked up a hammer and hit me with it," he said. "He didn’t slam it, that would have killed me, he just hit me in the face and broke my bone."
The struggle continued.
"Then he pulled out a pistol and grabbed me around the neck and drug me out of my room and went to (another housemate) David's room and said he was going to, you know, get David."
"When you say he was going to 'get David,' what does that mean, he was going to shoot David?" WFMY News 2's Jess Winters asked.
"Yeah, he said he was going to kill him."
Tesh said he doesn't know why Castillo was angry, or why he did what he did. He just knows he misses his friend.
"It's a tough thing when your friend dies that way and you lose everything that you own," he stated. "I'm keeping my hospital bracelets and I’m going to keep them on to remember Joey Castillo because that wasn’t the man that I knew that day."
Tesh said the Red Cross has been assisting but said he and the others are essentially homeless.
'We’re in need, we’re in great need. We don’t know where we’re going to live. We’ve been staying at motels which is very expensive so we’re struggling right now."
He's said he's working on setting up a GoFundMe. He lost everything in the fire, plus he's recovering from injuries.
"I have a fractured bone and nerve damage. I can't move this part of my lip right now but the doctor says it might be six months to a year before it heals. It could've been a lot worse."