California man found guilty of putting semen in co-worker's water bottle

A man in Orange County, California was convicted on Monday for assault and battery charges after he was found guilty of putting his semen in his co-worker's water bottle and work space. Stevens Millancastro, 30 is set to be sentenced Oct. 6, and could face up to two years and six months in prison all because his advances towards a female colleague were rejected.

Orange County Superior Court Judge Kathleen Roberts found Millancastro guilty of multiple counts of misdemeanour assault and battery and determined that he committed the crimes for sexual purposes. He was also ordered to register as a sex offender, The Orange Country Register reports.

Millancastro's attempts to retaliate against his female co-worker took place between November 2016 and January 2017, as prosecutors accused him of being obsessed with the woman. He had asked her out on a date but then he began to behave oddly when she turned him down. He started to ceaselessly stare at her enough to make the woman ask her boss to tell him to stop. She was then forced to file a complaint with the HR department.

From that time, the woman would come to work on several occasions and find a murky substance in her half-filled water bottle. Upon her insistence, her boss agreed to set up a surveillance camera to keep an eye on her desk. The woman came to work another morning and discovered a "milky white substance" on her keyboard.

Upon reviewing the footage, detectives were able to determine how Millancastro waited for the woman to leave and then smeared something on her keyboard and mouse using tissues. Police also said Millancastro had also put his semen in her water bottle as well as a bottle of honey she uses in her tea.

The woman testified against Millancastro saying that he made her feel extremely uncomfortable and that his conduct towards her was just disgusting.

Michael Morrison, the attorney representing Millancastro, acknowledged his client's "highly inappropriate" behaviour. However, he strongly denied that the man was acting out of sexual gratification. His reasons for this were based on the man's desire to retaliate against the woman after she lodged a complaint with the HR. Morrison claims his client's actions were brought on by his fear of losing his job.