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Man fatally shot after police chase
I was not one of the shooters, but this is having a big impact on the department.
So... how did your work day go?
PELL LAKE — Two Walworth County sheriff’s deputies on Monday fatally shot a man suspected of beating his daughter’s mother in Kenosha, kidnapping the girl and threatening her with a shotgun after a police chase.
Antonio J. Torres, 41, Zion, Ill., was wanted in Kenosha for abducting his 1-year-old daughter, Liliana J. Torres, and beating the girl’s 32-year-old mother earlier in the day, Kenosha Police Sgt. Hugh Rafferty said.
Antonio Torres was spotted hours later in Walworth County and led deputies on a high-speed chase with his daughter in the vehicle, Walworth County Sheriff’s Capt. Jay Maritz said.
Torres was shot and killed after stopping along County H near Pell Lake and making “life-threatening gestures toward the child,” Maritz said.
“He pointed the gun at the girl,” Walworth County Sheriff David Graves said. “From what I understand, preliminarily, there were two rounds fired” by two deputies.
The girl was uninjured and reunited with her mother at Aurora Lakeland Medical Center in Elkhorn.
Torres called Kenosha police at 11 a.m. Monday and told a dispatcher that he had beaten a woman, Rafferty said.
Torres and the woman have a 1-year-old daughter together, according to Kenosha police.
Torres abducted the girl and took her with him after the assault, Rafferty said.
When police arrived, the woman was shaken up and injured, but Torres and the girl were not around, according to Kenosha police. The woman was taken to a Kenosha hospital for non-life threatening injuries.
Torres later called the house and spoke with an officer, according to Kenosha police. He asked about the woman.
An officer asked Torres to return to the home, but Torres refused, Rafferty said.
Torres told the officer that the next time police saw him and his daughter that they would have been shot, according to Kenosha police.
Torres then hung up the phone, Rafferty said.
An Amber Alert was issued, and authorities statewide were searching for Torres, he said.
Torres was driving a 1999 Mercury Mountaineer and possibly was on his way to Illinois, where he has family, according to Kenosha police.
Four hours later, an off-duty Walworth County sheriff’s deputy spotted Torres’ vehicle driving along Highway 50 on the east side of Walworth County, Maritz said.
The deputy called for backup and a pursuit began, Maritz said.
Several patrol vehicles from different agencies chased Torres for 20 minutes at high speed, and Torres flashed a gun during the pursuit, he said.
Torres pulled over on County H near Pell Lake and brandished his gun, Maritz said.
Deputies shot Torres to protect the child, he said, and Torres died at the scene.
The girl was taken to the Elkhorn hospital but was not injured, Maritz said.
“We’re pleased that the child was recovered safely,” he said.
The girl’s mother picked her up at about 6 p.m. She didn’t speak with members of the media waiting outside the hospital.
The state Division of Criminal Investigation is investigating the incident.
The deputies involved in the shooting were scheduled to meet with a psychologist, Graves said.
“I think they did an outstanding job,” Graves said. “In my opinion, they saved that child’s life. They were given no other choice.”
Investigators closed County H south of Pell Lake from 3 p.m. until at least 11 p.m. after the shooting. Yellow police tape surrounded the shooting scene. The crime scene investigation vehicle was there.
According to court records, Torres in 1998 was charged with kidnapping in Kenosha County.
He was later convicted of battery, burglary, threats to injure and criminal trespass to a dwelling. The kidnapping charge was dropped.
The last time a Walworth County sheriff’s deputy shot and killed a man was two years ago in Delavan, Graves said. In that incident, the suspect shot his girlfriend and took her hostage.
Antonio J. Torres, 41, Zion, Ill., was wanted in Kenosha for abducting his 1-year-old daughter, Liliana J. Torres, and beating the girl’s 32-year-old mother earlier in the day, Kenosha Police Sgt. Hugh Rafferty said.
Antonio Torres was spotted hours later in Walworth County and led deputies on a high-speed chase with his daughter in the vehicle, Walworth County Sheriff’s Capt. Jay Maritz said.
Torres was shot and killed after stopping along County H near Pell Lake and making “life-threatening gestures toward the child,” Maritz said.
“He pointed the gun at the girl,” Walworth County Sheriff David Graves said. “From what I understand, preliminarily, there were two rounds fired” by two deputies.
The girl was uninjured and reunited with her mother at Aurora Lakeland Medical Center in Elkhorn.
Torres called Kenosha police at 11 a.m. Monday and told a dispatcher that he had beaten a woman, Rafferty said.
Torres and the woman have a 1-year-old daughter together, according to Kenosha police.
Torres abducted the girl and took her with him after the assault, Rafferty said.
When police arrived, the woman was shaken up and injured, but Torres and the girl were not around, according to Kenosha police. The woman was taken to a Kenosha hospital for non-life threatening injuries.
Torres later called the house and spoke with an officer, according to Kenosha police. He asked about the woman.
An officer asked Torres to return to the home, but Torres refused, Rafferty said.
Torres told the officer that the next time police saw him and his daughter that they would have been shot, according to Kenosha police.
Torres then hung up the phone, Rafferty said.
An Amber Alert was issued, and authorities statewide were searching for Torres, he said.
Torres was driving a 1999 Mercury Mountaineer and possibly was on his way to Illinois, where he has family, according to Kenosha police.
Four hours later, an off-duty Walworth County sheriff’s deputy spotted Torres’ vehicle driving along Highway 50 on the east side of Walworth County, Maritz said.
The deputy called for backup and a pursuit began, Maritz said.
Several patrol vehicles from different agencies chased Torres for 20 minutes at high speed, and Torres flashed a gun during the pursuit, he said.
Torres pulled over on County H near Pell Lake and brandished his gun, Maritz said.
Deputies shot Torres to protect the child, he said, and Torres died at the scene.
The girl was taken to the Elkhorn hospital but was not injured, Maritz said.
“We’re pleased that the child was recovered safely,” he said.
The girl’s mother picked her up at about 6 p.m. She didn’t speak with members of the media waiting outside the hospital.
The state Division of Criminal Investigation is investigating the incident.
The deputies involved in the shooting were scheduled to meet with a psychologist, Graves said.
“I think they did an outstanding job,” Graves said. “In my opinion, they saved that child’s life. They were given no other choice.”
Investigators closed County H south of Pell Lake from 3 p.m. until at least 11 p.m. after the shooting. Yellow police tape surrounded the shooting scene. The crime scene investigation vehicle was there.
According to court records, Torres in 1998 was charged with kidnapping in Kenosha County.
He was later convicted of battery, burglary, threats to injure and criminal trespass to a dwelling. The kidnapping charge was dropped.
The last time a Walworth County sheriff’s deputy shot and killed a man was two years ago in Delavan, Graves said. In that incident, the suspect shot his girlfriend and took her hostage.
I was not one of the shooters, but this is having a big impact on the department.
So... how did your work day go?
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