Ephrata man charged with burglary, firearm theft

EPHRATA — A Ephrata man was charged after allegedly entering a Ephrata home through an unlocked door, stealing a pistol and sleeping in the victim’s bed.

Grant County prosecutors charged Marco Torres, 33, of Ephrata, with first-degree burglary, theft of a firearm, second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm and possession of methamphetamine.

Early Saturday morning the Ephrata Police Department received a report of a burglary at a residence in the 500 block of West Division Avenue, with the alleged suspect leaving the scene of the burglary on foot heading toward the Grant County Courthouse. Police were advised the suspect, Torres, was wearing a shirt with a skull on it and carrying two red backpacks, according to police records. Torres was contacted and detained about 10 minutes after police received the report of the burglary.

The reporting party was able to positively identify Torres as the suspect who burglarized his home. The victim stated he arrived home early Saturday morning and upon entering his bedroom he could see someone was in his bed.

The victim allegedly went back into his kitchen to check for his loaded pistol, which was missing so he went to his vehicle and grabbed his shotgun and two rounds. He reportedly loaded two rounds into the magazine of the shotgun and entered his residence.

“Upon entry of his residence he cycled the pump shotgun loading a round into the chamber of the weapon. This apparently woke up Torres and he exited the bedroom. (The victim) advised he had Torres at gunpoint and asked him where his pistol was,” wrote a officer. “Torres removed the pistol from either a backpack or on his person and gave it to (the victim).”

The victim escorted Torres out of his residence and Torres left the area when the man contacted 911. The victim was able to positively identify one of the backpacks Torres was found to be in possession of as belonging to him. In addition, he said when Torres returned his pistol it was no longer loaded. Officers reportedly found a white crystal substance, believed to be meth, in a folded piece of paper in one of the backpacks, according to police records.

Torres told police he knows the victim, which the victim refuted, and stated he was doing yard work at the victim’s residence. He admitted to taking a pistol from the residence, but stated he thought it was an Airsoft gun and said he was going to sell it. Torres went on to state that he went inside the Division Avenue residence through an unlocked back door and went to sleep in the victim’s bed, only to be woken up to the victim cycling a shotgun.

Torres stated there was nothing in the two red backpacks that belonged to victim and said he got them from a friend. He advised he had not been drinking or using drugs, but stated he used heroin about two days prior to the burglary.

Richard Byrd can be reached via email at city@columbiabasinherald.com.