Wounded officer recovering from surgery; suspect charged

When he was pulled over by police Tuesday for a broken taillight, Eric Torres was carrying a stolen handgun and driving a car packed with heroin. Packets of the drug were stuffed in the center console, stashed inside the glove box and tucked under the seats.

So, when an officer asked him for his driver's license, Torres handed it over and sped off, setting in motion a chain of events that ended with the shooting of Police Officer Edward Davies in a Feltonville mini-mart.

That account, detailed in police reports obtained by The Inquirer, forms the basis of prosecutors' case against Torres, who was arraigned Thursday on attempted murder, assault on a law enforcement officer, aggravated assault, and other charges. He was ordered held without bail.

Torres is also a suspect in the drug-related killing of a Fairhill man, police sources said. A search of Torres' home after the shooting of Davies turned up more heroin and a gun that police are testing in connection with the June slaying of Luis Acevedo, 46, who investigators believe may have been killed over stolen drugs.

Davies, 41, a six-year veteran, was recovering from three surgeries Thursday, including the removal of one of his kidneys.

Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey said the officer's condition was improving.

"With every day that goes by, he's getting better," Ramsey said after donating blood to aid Davies. Dozens of officers, including Davies' entire squad from the 25th District, also donated at a blood drive held at Temple University.

Fraternal Order of Police lodge president John McNesby said he had talked to Davies' wife, Marissa, on Thursday.

"The family is very optimistic that things are going to be OK," McNesby said. "She expressed her thankfulness for everyone's support."

Torres, 31, of Feltonville, was briefly hospitalized and was released to police custody. He is not cooperating in the investigation of Davies' shooting or the killing of Acevedo, sources say.

Homicide investigators believe the car involved in Acevedo's slaying matched a description of a car Torres had driven at the time. Shortly after the killing of Acevedo, police sources said, Torres traded the vehicle in for the gray BMW he crashed Tuesday after fleeing police.

On Tuesday night, crime scene investigators recovered a 9mm handgun in the bedroom of Torres' home around the corner from the mini-mart.

In addition to testing the weapon for a connection to the Acevedo case, police are investigating whether it was used in any other crimes.

"They expect the gun in the house is going to lead to other jobs," said McNesby.

Police also found large amounts of heroin in Torres' house. A toolbox in his dining room contained packaged heroin, bulk heroin, a scale, and other drug paraphernalia. In an upstairs bedroom, police found a black "tally" book, according to a police report obtained by The Inquirer.

The packets in the house were marked with the stampings "Lexus" and "eBay," the same as the markings on those found in the BMW that Torres crashed and abandoned blocks from the mini-mart, according to the report.

Inside the store, police recovered a .45-caliber gun. That gun was stolen in a June 2012 burglary of the Northeast Philadelphia home of a retired Philadelphia police officer, Ramsey said.

He said the Police Department was working with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to trace the weapon. It was one of two guns stolen in the burglary, along with a laptop and a Movado watch, according to a police report of that incident.

Police reports in Davies' case offer a vivid picture of a violent struggle inside the corner store and the actions of fellow officers who tried to help him.

After Torres ran into the store with officers in pursuit, they cornered him as he tried to flee up a back stairwell and threw him to the floor. They yelled at him in English and Spanish, and ordered him to show his hands because they believed he was hiding a gun, the report said.

Davies arrived as Torres struggled with other officers. At one point, Torres pulled out a gun and pushed it under Davies' bulletproof vest.

An officer wrapped his hands around the weapon and tried to wrestle it away, the report said. The officer had a grasp on the gun when Torres fired.

After the shot, the officer continued to struggle with Torres, preventing him from firing again. The officer was later treated for burns to his hands.

Responding officers lifted Davies into a police cruiser and rushed him to Temple University Hospital.

At a blood drive to support him Thursday, fellow officers described him as a model officer. Last year, he received a Commendation of Merit for a 2011 kidnapping arrest.

In that incident, Davies was just beginning an afternoon shift when information over police radio described a kidnapping at Sixth Street and Indiana Avenue. The report said two gunmen had shoved a man into the trunk of a car in a family dispute.

Davies quickly located the car and arrested one of the suspects, while another officer collared the other gunman.

Fellow officers said Davies was well liked and known for his laid-back personality. A former plumber, he is an Eagles fan who enjoys riding his motorcycle, listening to rock music - especially Kiss - smoking good cigars, and drinking a Budweiser in his backyard, they said.

"He's one of the guys who would smile at you every morning no matter what kind of day he is having," said 25th District Officer Thomas Hayes, who graduated from the Police Academy with Davies. "If you need $20, he's right there."

He is a married father of four whose youngest son turned 2 a week ago today.

Torres came to the United States from Puerto Rico in 2005 and has been in jail much of the time since. He has a history of drug arrests and was twice charged with assaults on police.

One such case has eerie echoes of the incident that led to the shooting of Davies.

In December 2009, 25th District officers suspected Torres of selling drugs on the corner of Third Street and Indiana. Seeing them, he ran into a corner store. When they approached, he said, "It ain't gonna be that way today," according to police sources.

They said he threw punches at the officers, body-slammed one, and briefly grabbed an officer's batons.

In a nonjury trial, Torres was found not guilty of those charges.

Contributing to this article were Inquirer staff writers Vernon Clark, Sulaiman Abdur-Rahman, Summer Ballentine, and Joseph A. Slobodzian.