Man arrested in Chaffee County for kidnapping son was awaiting trial in prior kidnapping, assault of teen girl

CHAFFEE COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) – A man who was arrested in Chaffee County on Thursday, accused of kidnapping his son, was out on bond and set to go to trial for a separate case involving the kidnapping and assault of a teenage girl, according to records obtained by KUSA.

Authorities say 46-year-old Phillip Lee Torres was arrested in Chaffee County on Sept. 25 after police in Thornton issued an Amber Alert for Torres's 14-year-old son, who was allegedly with him.

According to the Chaffee County Sheriff's Office (CCSO), Torres was not legally allowed to be with his son and had taken him from his caregivers without permission. KUSA reports Torres was free on bond at the time and had removed an ankle monitor related to a prior case. Torres also had an arrest warrant out of Adams County.

According to an initial Amber Alert, Thornton police reported Torres' grey Chevy Silverado had been located by a license plate reader camera in Poncha Springs in Chaffee County. Following the alert, CCSO began receiving calls from residents who had spotted the vehicle in the Salida and Poncha Springs area.

Eventually, Torres' vehicle was spotted by officers in downtown Salida, who attempted to pull him over, but he fled, prompting a high-speed chase, the sheriff's office said.

After pursuing Torres for approximately 15 miles, authorities were able to successfully deploy stop sticks and deflate his tires, ending the chase.

Torres was taken into custody by deputies, and his son was rescued from the vehicle uninjured, CCSO said.

“Law Enforcement-related vehicle pursuits are extremely dangerous, not just for the officers involved and the subject being pursued, but for the community. There are certain instances where terminating a pursuit is just not an option, and this was one of those situations," Chaffee County Sheriff Andy Rohrich said. "The risk to not only public but to the child in the vehicle was too high to allow a very dangerous man like Torres to get away."

Torres was taken to a hospital as a precaution before being booked into the Chaffee County Detention Facility for the following charges:

• Vehicular eluding
• Child abuse
• Reckless endangerment
• Violation of a criminal protection order
• Reckless driving
• Speeding (40 or more over the posted speed limit)
• Driving a motor vehicle while license under restraint

These are not the first serious charges Torres has faced; in fact, he was set to go to trial this week for a kidnapping case from over two years ago.

According to an arrest affidavit obtained by KUSA, Torres was arrested back in June 2023 on suspicion of kidnapping a teenage girl, assaulting her and holding her captive in his Thornton home.

On June 21, 2023, Thornton Police were called to investigate a suspicious person in a residential neighborhood, but when they arrived, they instead found a teenage girl on the street whose hands and feet were tied up with tape and rope.

The suspicious person reported to police turned out to be the teen, who was seen trying to escape from Torres' home.

KUSA reports that Torres was accused of picking the teen up from Denver before driving her to his Thornton home, where he tied her up and sexually assaulted her, according to an affidavit.

According to court records, the trial for that kidnapping case is set to begin Monday, though it is currently unclear whether it will be delayed following the new charges stemming from Thursday's arrest.

Stay up to date with the latest local news, sports, and investigations by downloading the KRDO13 app. Click here to download it from the Apple App Store. Android users can download it from Google Play here.