Escaped Car-Theft Suspect Seized Again in Drug Case
An auto-theft suspect who escaped as he stepped off a prisoner bus at County Jail was rearrested three days later in an unrelated drug case, the Sheriff’s Department reported Monday.
Benjamin A. Torrez of San Diego was arrested Sunday by San Diego police in the 2900 block of Webster Street on suspicion of being under the influence of a controlled substance, said Detective Ed Augustine of the Sheriff’s Department.
Downtown jail personnel recognized Torrez from his previous arrest, Augustine said. He was positively identified from records and photographs, Augustine said, and was also booked on escape charges.
The suspect had used the pseudonyms Ruben and Andy Torres after being arrested Sunday about 4:30 p.m., Augustine said.
Augustine said Torrez and about 40 other inmates were being unloaded from a bus at the Downtown Jail Thursday when Torrez and another inmate picked the locks on chain restraints around their waists.
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