San Jose Councilman Omar Torres has been charged with multiple counts of sexually abusing a family member dating back to the late 1990s when the suspect was a child, authorities announced Wednesday afternoon.
Torres was arrested Tuesday evening, hours after he offered to resign, San Jose Police Chief Paul Joseph said at a news conference Wednesday. The judge issued a warrant for the council member's arrest on charges of indecent acts with a child, forced oral sex and forced sex with a child, according to Joseph.
San Jose City Councilman Omar Torres has been charged with multiple counts of sexual assault against a family member dating back to the late 1990s when the victim was a child. He was arrested on Tuesday and agreed to resign at the end of the month.
(Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office)
The San Clara County district attorney's office said the allegations began in 1999 and involved a relative of Torres. If convicted, he could face decades in prison, according to Jay Boyarsky, Santa Clara County's chief assistant district attorney.
“Too often, people look down on victims who come forward years after the crime,” Boyarsky said in a statement. “As a sex crime prosecutor, I spoke with many of these survivors. Let me tell you: They are heroes.”
Torres was in court Wednesday for an arraignment but did not enter a plea, according to the DA's office. He is expected to appear in court on November 14 for a bail hearing.
He is currently being held at San Jose's Main Jail Complex, according to inmate records. No bail is allowed.
A call to an attorney listed to represent Torres was not immediately returned.
Torres submitted his resignation as San Jose city clerk hours before his arrest on Tuesday. However, his resignation was not immediately effective; instead, he said he would step down on Nov. 27.
“This election comes with a heavy heart, but I believe it will help the people I voted for and our community,” he wrote.
Torres did not mention his legal troubles in his book.
Joseph said Torres' accuser contacted San Jose police on November 4 and detailed the new allegations against Torres.
The 43-year-old council member was already being investigated by San Jose police for allegedly sexually abusing a child, San José Spotlight reported last month.
That investigation is still ongoing, Joseph said.
“We will not release new information on the nature or nature of that case unless it is complete,” he said.
A police affidavit from that investigation appeared to show Torres was being abused by a 21-year-old Chicago man with whom she shared nude photos and graphic text conversations, Spotlight reported. The affidavit states that the man threatened to make the photos and text messages public if Torres did not pay him large sums of money.
New allegations, unrelated to the original investigation, led to the arrest within a day.
“The subsequent investigation led to the discovery of evidence that confirmed the survivor's allegations,” said Joseph.
The police chief added that the alleged assault began when both were young, and continued when Torres was an adult and the victim was a child.
“These allegations are every parent's worst nightmare,” San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan said at a news conference. “But you don't have to be a parent to be sick of the charges brought against Omar Torres, which are some of the most serious charges you can imagine.”
It is not clear who will fill Torres' seat once he is gone.
Calls and emails to the mayor's manager were not answered.
