Newly released court documents reveal troubling details linked to accusations of sexual misconduct against San Jose City Councilman Omar Torres.
The documents detail an alleged relationship between Torres and a 21-year-old Chicago man who may have been a minor when the relationship started. Torres claims he is the victim, alleging the man extorted him, and he reported as much to San Jose police on Aug. 29.
Police investigated the extortion claim, which Thursday's released affidavit confirms, but a search of the Chicago man's phone revealed that in February 2022, Torres sent the man a photo of his 11-year-old son. The conversation begins innocently but then turns to the subject of the boy’s genitals.
The text exchanges between the two continued through April 8, 2022, with a discussion of Torres’s planned visit to Chicago for the Democratic National Convention and a planned encounter with the man.
Fast-forward to August of this year, when Torres reported the alleged extortion, claiming the Chicago man threatened to leak nude photos and videos of the councilman if he didn’t get paid. According to the affidavit, Torres told police he had paid the man $22,000 up to that point.
In a statement released earlier this month, after he was detained by police, Torres said: "Let me be absolutely clear – these accusations are entirely false. This detention was based on misinformation provided to law enforcement in response to a police report I filed against an individual for extortion and stalking and is a clear act of retaliation from this person."
On Thursday morning, Torres's attorney told NBC Bay Area he has yet to review the affidavit and said the councilman maintains his innocence.
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NBC Bay Area is also reaching out to the Chicago man named in the affidavit.
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