By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC - Guardian UK - Honduras - ESPN
SDNY COURTHOUSE, Oct 15 – Aquilino Torres is accused of kidnapping a woman and her seven year old son.
On July 14 a guilty verdict after the week-long trial before U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York Judge Denise L. Cote. Inner City Press has been following the case and now the sentencing: "AQUILINO TORRES was sentenced to 292 months in prison for his kidnapping and stalking of an adult woman (“Victim-1”) and the kidnapping of her seven-year-old son (“Minor Victim-1”) in or around October 2020. TORRES was convicted following a one-week jury trial in July 2021 before U.S. District Judge Denise L. Cote, who imposed today’s sentence. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Aquilino Torres carried out a brutal kidnapping of a 7-year-old child and his mother, and threatened to kill the child. He held his victims captive and physically abused both mother and child. Thanks to the FBI and NYPD, Torres was apprehended, prosecuted, and convicted of these horrific crimes, and has now been sentenced to a lengthy prison term.”
AQUILINO TORRES was convicted of kidnapping, kidnapping of a minor, and stalking for the October 2020 kidnapping and stalking of an adult female victim and the kidnapping of Victim-1’s 7-year-old son.
The complaint said Torres texted the mother on October 5, 2020, "Watch when I catch you. I'ma kick your son's teeth out." It says Victim-1 had been unfaithful. Things only got worse from there.
Federal Defenders, representing Torres, on June 25 asked that he be given three pairs of dress slacks, one tie, one belt and five pair of underwear.
And at week's end on July 9, a planned witness was withdrawn and so the trial day ended before 5 pm, albeit only 20 minutes early. Judge Cote noted it, denied motions and said See you Monday.
On Monday July 12, Judge Cote issued an order denying the defense's request to charge the jury of the purported lesser included offense of stalking resulting in bodily injury.
The case is US v. Torres, 20-cr-608 (Cote)
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