Companion to man shot by cops booked in robberies

A companion of the man shot to death Saturday by Farmersville police was charged Thursday with six additional counts of armed robbery after being booked Tuesday in connection with two armed robberies, Visalia police reported.

A Visalia police spokesman said John Martin Torales, 25, was arrested Saturday along with Estevan Gomez, 26, after a traffic stop. Both men were sought on parole violations. The two were being booked at Farmersville police headquarters when Gomez reportedly struggled with an officer for the officer’s weapon and was shot to death.

On Monday, Visalia police served a warrant at a residence associated with Torales, the spokesman said. Officers recovered evidence linking Torales to robberies on June 17 at a Valero gas station on West Noble Avenue and June 25 at a 7-Eleven on Mooney Boulevard. In those robberies, the bandit took cash after pointing a gun at the clerk.

On Thursday, the Visalia Police Department said Torales was charged with six additional counts of armed robbery. The alleged robberies were committed on June 19 in Tipton and Poplar, on June 29 in Kingsburg and Fresno County, and on July 3 in Earlimart and Tipton.

This story was originally published July 22, 2015 at 12:25 PM with the headline "Companion to man shot by cops booked in robberies."