LUBBOCK, Texas — An arrest warrant provided new information about the aggravated robbery which happened prior to four officers shooting and wounding Phillip Torres, 30, of Lubbock.
According to information on the Lubbock County Detention Center jail roster, Torres remained in law enforcement custody at University Medical Center in the surgical intensive care unit as of Friday morning.
Police Chief Floyd Mitchell provided information Thursday about the chase and officer-involved shooting which happened the day before. Mitchell said Torres led officers on two separate pursuits Wednesday evening. The second pursuit ended in the 2100 block of 67th Street.
The warrant said officers stopped Torres’ SUV by performing “a maneuver which caused the blue Equinox to come to a stop when it collided with a parked vehicle.” Torres got out of the SUV with a machete in his right hand and “ran at full speed towards officers.”
Mitchell said four officers opened fire on Torres. He was said to have suffered serious injuries.
Between the first pursuit and the second, officials said Torres stole items from The Knife Guys store at 6620 Milwaukee Avenue. Torres was charged with aggravated robbery, which was the basis for the arrest warrant.
The warrant went into some detail about Torres’ time inside The Knife Guys.
“[The store clerk] reported a Hispanic male had entered the store and had armed himself with a cold steel axe and a gladius machete,” the warrant said. “Both weapons are approximately 18 inches long.”
“[The store clerk] provided a sworn statement stating she was the only sales person in the store but her husband … had been in the parking lot,” the warrant said. “The suspect then held up both weapons in a manner which made her fear for her life.”
“[The store clerk] stated the suspect had said his parents had been killed and the police officers pursing him were not real officers,” the warrant said. “[Her husband] entered the store and assisted her by trying to disarm the suspect.”
“She called 911 and was advised to leave the store and she and her husband exited the store,” the warrant said. Police arrived right as Torres was driving away. That led to the second pursuit which ended with shots fired.
Torres bond was set at $400,000. Chief Mitchell said Torres was in law enforcement custody even though he remained at University Medical Center for his gunshot injuries.
