Correction: This article was corrected to reflect the fact that Anthony Frank Torres received 12 guilty verdicts, not 14 as was initially reported. This error was due to a miscommunication from the Sweetwater County Attorney’s Office. SweetwaterNOW apologizes for the error.
GREEN RIVER — Anthony Frank Torres’ days as a free man are likely over.
Torres received 12 guilty verdicts to charges of sexual abuse of a minor in the first and second degrees at the end of a jury trial before District Court Judge Richard Lavery last week. The five charges of second-degree sexual abuse of a minor each carry a maximum penalty of a 20-year prison sentence and a fine of $10,000, while the seven first-degree sexual abuse of a minor charges each carry a maximum sentence of 50 years in prison and a fine of $10,000. The charges stem from incidents that took place in 2012, 2016, and from 2017 to 2019. Two counts, one for second-degree sexual abuse of a child and one for first-degree sexual abuse of a child, were dismissed.
Sentencing will take place at a later date, but Torres will face a maximum prison sentence of 450 years. Sweetwater County Attorney Daniel Erramouspe said his office seeks a sentence that will keep Torres locked up for life.
“We’re looking for this guy not getting out again,” he told SweetwaterNOW.
Erramouspe said cases involving the sexual abuse of minors are always hard on the prosecutors and investigators. He said while the National District Attorney’s Association has a Wellness for Prosecutors section to help them manage the impacts heinous cases can have, that isn’t always enough. He knows attorneys that have specialized in tackling sexual abuse cases during their career who later had to take an early retirement because they couldn’t handle those cases anymore. With law enforcement, Erramouspe said they’re often seeing much of a situation upfront as they’re investigating.
“When it’s children, it’s a bit tougher,” he said.
Erramouspe said the deputy county attorneys prosecuting the case, John Olson and Lauren Radakovich, did a good job in working the case and securing the guilty verdicts. Erramouspe also said Det. Martha Holzgrafe of the Green River Police Department was critical in securing evidence that was used in Torres’ conviction. However, Erramouspe admits the convictions and the investigation couldn’t happen without one key starting point.
“It starts with the victims willing to come forward and report their experiences,” he said.
