Suspect Arrested for Assault with a Deadly Weapon – NR22288ml

Studio City: On September 30, 2022, a Studio City resident (victim) approached two unhoused persons who were squatting on his property at the 11500 block of Sunshine Terrace. The victim advised the two they were trespassing and needed to remove their homeless encampment from his property. As they began to pack up, one of the unhoused persons (suspect) struck the victim in the back with a metal pole. The blow was unprovoked and caused the victim to drop to his knees. The suspect and another unhoused person then fled the location.

A neighbor, who heard the attack, called 911 and took photos of the suspect, who was dressed in women’s clothing. Officers responded to the scene and were able to obtain video surveillance of the suspect. The victim suffered severe injuries from the attack. A community alert was generated, and the victim’s wife helped rally the neighborhood and local media in an attempt to identify her husband’s assailant.

On October 4, 2022, at around 2:30 p.m., a community member who saw the flyer, was riding his bike along the LA River walking trail just north of where the crime occurred. He observed, who he believed to be the suspect, camped along the river. He immediately called the police; officers and detectives responded to the area.

The suspect was located and taken into custody without incident. The suspect was identified as 37-year-old Joshua Anthony Torres. Torres has multiple felony convictions, is on parole for burglary, and has an active no-bail warrant for parole violation. Torres was subsequently interviewed by detectives and booked for 245(a)(1) PC, Assault with a Deadly Weapon and no-bail parole warrant.

Partnerships between law enforcement and the community are essential to public safety, and today’s arrest is only one example of many, where this partnership played an important role in solving a crime and removing a dangerous felon from the streets.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to contact North Hollywood Division detectives at (818) 754-8412. During non-business hours or on weekends, calls should be directed to 1-877-LAPD-24-7 (1-877-527-3247). Anyone wishing to remain anonymous should call the L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (800-222-8477) or go directly to www.lacrimestoppers.org.

Tipsters may also visit www.lapdonline.org, and click on “Anonymous Web Tips” under the “Get Involved-Crime Stoppers” menu to submit an online tip. Lastly, tipsters may also download the “P3 Tips” mobile application and select the L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers as their local program.