Officials say a suspect was captured while trying to leave the country while being wanted for sexually assaulting a family member following a Thanksgiving gathering in Round Lake Beach.
Lake County Assistant State’s Attorney Kathy Laughlin said the Round Lake Beach Police Department responded to a report of a sexual assault victim who was at Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville.
The victim reported she was at her aunt’s house on Thanksgiving Day for a family celebration.
One of the victim’s family members, Alvaro Torres, 30, of Round Lake Beach, handed the victim her first drink of the night, Laughlin said.
The victim continued to drink throughout the night and she went to check on her young son who was in the basement.
She felt sick at that point and went to the bathroom, Laughlin said. One of the woman’s cousins went to the basement to help the victim.
The cousin and someone else helped carry the victim to the couch where she fell asleep.
The victim reported she remembered opening her eyes and saw someone on top of her under a blanket, Laughlin said.
She initially thought it was her young son jumping on top of her.
Laughlin said the woman then woke up again to hear one of her family members yelling, “You’re disgusting, get out of my house.”
The victim heard pants buttoning up and learned Torres was on top of her after the family member yelled at the man, Laughlin said.
She was naked from the waist down but told officers she had been fully clothed before going to sleep.
The victim said she was confused, felt the room spinning and fell back asleep after getting dressed.
She underwent a sexual assault exam which showed she suffered an internal injury, Laughlin said.
Officers reviewed the victim’s phone and found two messages from Torres.
He said he was sorry for what happened, would not be drinking again and that he was moving to Texas, according to Laughlin.
Laughlin said Torres also later told the family member who caught him that it was a “mistake” what had happened.
Torres was charged with attempted criminal sexual assault, a Class 2 felony. An arrest warrant was issued for him on December 6.
Investigators learned that Torres bought tickets to Mexico and had planned to leave within a few days, Laughlin said.
Police arrested Torres just after midnight on December 7 at O’Hare International Airport. He had a flight to Guadalajara, Mexico.
The Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office filed a petition to detain Torres pending trial, arguing he poses a threat to the community and is a willful flight risk.
Prosecutors called him an “untreated sex offender” who took advantage of a victim who was unable to give consent.
Lake County Judge Michael Nerheim granted the petition following a detention hearing on Tuesday.
Torres, who remains held in the Lake County Jail, is set to appear in court again on January 9.