An arrest was made in Erie yesterday as a result of a tip on Facebook. A tip on a Facebook page has led to the arrest of a southern Oregon man trying to escape charges of felony sexual assault. Laramie Torres, 35, was arrested in Erie, Pa and charged with 10 counts of first-degree rape and 10 counts of first-degree sodomy for abuse of a girl that started when she was 11 and continued until she was 15. Friends and family of the victim in the case started a Facebook page dedicated to collecting tips about where Torres was. A tip in Michigan eventually led police to Pennsylvania, where a Pennsylvania State Police trooper was able to track Torres to an apartment in Erie.
Ted Arneault, the man who helped bring Presque Isle Downs and Casino to the Erie area, is fighting to keep his state gambling license. Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board investigators are opposing Ted Arneault’s application to renew his license due to “inaccuracies or inconsistencies” in Arneault’s statements to investigators. A public hearing on the matter is scheduled in March.
A southern tier tubing tragedy has claimed the life of a Pennsylvania mother at Allegheny State Park. 33-year-old Tricia Lewis of Erie Pennsylvania was tubing with her 3-year-old son Sunday afternoon when she struck a tree. Parks Police say that the 3-year-old was not injured. They’re still trying to figure out if she threw him off the tube before she crashed, knowing she was in danger. Parks Police have closed the summit area hill while they investigate what exactly happened there.
Lake Erie is currently 90-95% frozen over, and with a forecast of more cold temperatures, the National Weather Service predicts that the lake may completely freeze over for the first time in 14 years. This could mean less snow for the Erie area, as the layer of ice would lock in moisture and greatly reduce the amount of lake effect snow. Sounds good for all the drivers out there, but it could cause delays in the shipping industry.
Longtime Erie civil rights activist Howard Horton and Cambridge Springs educator Cathy Hutchison will be honored Wednesday during Edinboro University of Pennsylvania’s 14th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Awards Luncheon, which celebrates social equality, community activism and education, and the ideals of the late civil rights leader King. Horton, the father of 13 and a court-appointed foster parent for many other Erie children, became a community activist and civil rights leader during the 1960s. Hutchison, who earned multiple education degrees from Edinboro, was selected because of her educational service at Hermitage House Youth Services Inc. in Cambridge Springs.
An Erie church was vandalized yesterday by 25-year-old Chad M. Walburn. He broke into Holy Trinity Luthern Church at 643 W 17th St and caused some serious damage to the altar area and pews. When church members arrived around 8:30 a.m., he was sitting in the pastor’s office drinking coffee and listening to music. Seriously? Walburn was charged with burglary and institutional vandalism. He told police that he attended a narcotics anonymous meeting at the church on Sunday.
An Erie youth hockey team narrowly escaped injury when a Pittsburgh area ice arena roof collapsed on Sunday. The Erie Lions team of 6-8 year olds was on the ice for a trophy ceremony just minutes before the domed roof of the Rostraver Gardens Arena came crashing down, likely weighed down by heavy snow from a storm last weekend. They had just won the Championship game of the Three Rivers Tournament and had headed to the locker room when families were warned to get their kids and get out of the building. Only the Zamboni driver was on the ice and he reportedly was not hurt.
Events
The Erie Pennsylvania Sports Fishing Association will host a Tackle Swap and Meet on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Lincoln School, 831 E. 31st. Cost is $3 for adults, $1 for ages 13-18, and children 12 and younger are free. There will be contests for kids, and various seminars for all anglers. All proceeds benefit EPSFA programs for youngsters. For information go to www.epsfa.com.
Laramie Torres was arrested Friday, not yesterday.
I would suggest to anyone who has had contact with Torre in your area to speak honestly with your children. I am an administrator on the FB page that was instrumental in leading to the capture of Torres. I am also the grandfather and guardian of the child he stands accused of raping and sodomizing.
Torres’ wife, Carly Rachelle Torres is wanted on felony counts as well, though not extraditable. She will remain in your area as long as Torres is incarcerated there. If you have hired her in any capacity, you are putting your business at risk based on her past criminal record in fraud and theft.
Listen to your children. This is a crime that is possible only through silence. The victim in this case showed great courage in coming forth with her story. We believed and supported her and continue to do so through the long road of her recovery. If you love your children, and if they had any contact with Torres, please go the extra mile. To not do so, is to leave them to a lifetime of always being broken; of never being able to be the person they should become.