San Jose City Councilmember Omar Torres facing new child sex crime allegations
Authorities in San Jose on Wednesday provided details about new charges against former City Councilmember Omar Torres involving the sexual assault of a young relative that led to his arrest on Election Day.
The embattled councilmember made headlines Tuesday when San Jose police confirmed his arrest as part of an investigation into alleged lewd acts with a child.
San Jose Police Chief Paul Joseph and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan spoke with reporters at a press conference Wednesday afternoon.
A short time later, Torres faced a judge for the first time. He's been charged with molesting a family member back in the late 1990's.
Still photos from inside the courthouse showed Torres for the first time since his arrest.
Wearing a county jail jumpsuit and shackles, Torres stood behind a sheriff's deputy as he was arraigned on three felony counts of child sexual assault.
Video cameras were not allowed in the courtroom for the arraignment, but Chief Assistant District Attorney Jay Boyarski spoke with reporters right after the hearing.
"Mr. Torres was remanded without bail and he remains in custody," said Boyarski.
According to police, on Monday, November 4, the department was contacted by a survivor who detailed new allegations involving councilmember Torres that are in addition to an existing investigation into sexually explicit text messages found on a cell phone owned by Torres that allegedly referenced minors.
Torres' attorney has claimed the messages were "outrageous fantasy and role play." Those allegations has already led to Torres being removed from several committees. Other San Jose officials also started a recall campaign against him.
Torres handed in his resignation on Tuesday before his arrest, Councilmember Bien Doan said.
Detectives immediately opened an independent investigation into the new allegations, which quickly uncovered evidence corroborating the survivor's allegations of sexual assaults by Torres. On Tuesday, a judge issued an arrest warrant for Torres on multiple charges including lewd acts with a child. Torres was subsequently taken into custody by members from the San Jose Police Department's Internet Crimes Against Children task force.
Joseph confirmed that the victim and Torres knew each other. According to online reports, the survivor and Torres are related.
"The alleged assault started when both the survivor and Torres were minors, and continued after Torres became an adult, but while the survivor was still a minor," Joseph said. "The original investigation of Omar Torres is still active and ongoing, and we will not be releasing any new information on the status or nature of that case, other than that it is not yet complete."
San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan also addressed the alleged crimes.
"These allegations are every parent's worst nightmare," Mahan said. "But you don't have to be a parent to be sickened by the charges against Omar Torres, which are some of the most serious charges imaginable."
Mahan went on to assure the residents of the district Torres represents that he and the city council would address how to fill the vacancy left by the councilmember's resignation, whether by appointment or special election, which was the method that he said he favored despite the time and cost it would entail.
"I know this is a shock to all of us. We're devastated and disgusted by these allegations, and I know that San Jose deserves better. So do our children and our families," said Mahan. "I hope that this resignation and arrest can allow San Jose to move on from this unfortunate chapter and move full steam ahead on the issues our community cares about the most."
Mahan is asking anyone with information to come forward.
"If you have any information related to this case, the initial ongoing investigation or other cases involving harm to children, I implore you to reach out to the San Jose Police Department whether you are a member of the public or you work for the city of San Jose," said Mayor Mahan.
Torres is expected back in court on November 14th. If convicted of these crimes, he could face up to 24 years in prison.
