Morgan Hill police reports obtained by NBC Bay Area on Friday reveal new details in the case against the 21-year-old Morgan Hill man charged with kidnapping and killing Sierra Lamar exactly eight months ago today.
Most revealing: An expert conclusion that a fingerprint found on the battery pack of a stun gun used in a March 2009 Safeway attempted kidnapping of a woman in Morgan Hill matched the left thumb print of Antolin Garcia Torres. That Safeway was on Tennant Station in Morgan Hill, and the report states that the 46-year-old San Martin woman felt like she was Tased five times.
"The latent print was recovered by the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office Fingerprint Identification Services who ultimately matched the latent print to the left thumb of Antolin Garcia-Torres," the report read in part.
Torres was arrested May 22 and was later charged with the murder and kidnap of Sierra, a 15-year-old girl who was last seen walking to her bus stop in Morgan Hill on March 16. Friday is the eighth anniversary of her disappearance. Her body has never been found. Her case and story have been broadcast nationally and the case is among the most high-profile in the Bay Area.
Late Tuesday, Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney David Boyd added three new attempted kidnapping and carjacking charges to the Torres case, including three incidents that occurred at two Morgan Hill Safeway grocery stores in March 2009. All of the women in those cases were able to escape. While he was in custody in the Sierra matter, Torres was "administratively booked" on Aug. 8 regarding the three 2009 cases. NBC Bay Area was first to report Tuesday about the amended charges.
The new charges didn't exactly spell out how Torres was linked to the 2009 cases. And much of the court file against Torres has previously been sealed. The newly obtained police reports shed more light into what evidence investigators have on Torres, who has not yet entered a plea and denied requests for comment.
Among the other police report findings:
- Torres worked at a Safeway, and the police reports indicate that he used his grocery store club card three days before Sierra disappeared to buy 1.5 gallons of bleach and a turkey baster. How those items are relevant to her disappearance were not spelled out.
- Torres did not work on the two days of the attempted March 19 and 26 carjackings in 2009.
- Torres was transferrred from the Tennant Station Way and 840 E. Dunne Avenue on July 5 2009. He was a courtesy clerk and checker and was ultimately fired on Oct. 20, 2010.
Earlier this week, Sierra's dad, Steve Lamar, told NBC Bay Area is he hopeful the fact that the case is back in the news will inspire someone to call the tip line with information about his daughter's whereabouts.
Local
"We see this as a positive development in building a case against Torres. Perhaps it will get more answers and we will be able to find Sierra," Lamar added. He pointed out that it's positive that prosecutors are "building a case" and "trying to show a pattern."
Torres was 17 at the time of these alleged 2009 crimes, but a judge ruled that he could be charged as an adult. His next court date is Dec. 10.
Anyone with information regarding these crimes should contact Detective Corporal Jason Kadluboski at 408-846-0350. Those who want to remain anonymous may call WeTip at 1-800-782-7463 (1-800-78-Crime).
NBC Bay Area's Lisa Fernandez and Tony Koveleski contributed to this report.
