Arrest in Sierra Lamar Murder: Cops To Announce Her Disappearance Ended in Her Death
This morning, Morgan Hill detectives will be giving a press conference to announce that 15 year old Sierra Lamar, who disappeared from her home on March 16, has been murdered.
Garcia Torres Mug Shot
In custody currently for Sierra’s murder is Antolin Garcia-Torres, 21, of San Martin who was booked at Santa Clara County Jail on suspicion of murder and kidnapping, said sheriff’s Sgt. Jose Cardoza.
The suspect attended Central High School in Morgan Hill and does not have a serious criminal history except for a 2009 arrest for resisting arrest, KTVU-TV reported. He had worked at a Safeway store on Tennant Avenue in Morgan Hill where he was arrested at about 6 p.m.
In early May, Santa Clara County Sheriff detectives released a picture of a red Jetta with a black hood in order to generate tips, but the vehicle had already been impounded. Sources inside the investigation have confirmed forensic tests indicated Lamar had been in the vehicle.
A news conference is scheduled for this morning. Please check back to www.blinkoncrime.com for updates.
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I am so so sad this morning. God bless you Sierra and prayer for strength to your family and love ones. Thank you to all the Law Enforcement Officers that worked so hard to bring closure for you and your family and all those that knew and loved you.
Ode
Ode, thank you for mentioning LE- they got this right, and it is an example of their diligence and talent.
When it is time and all the facts are known, this case is in need of a “when to know when your teen is in distress” by watching their social network posts review. God Bless Sierra and her friends and family in the wake of this horrific news.
B
“When it is time and all the facts are known, this case is in need of a “when to know when your teen is in distress” by watching their social network posts review. God Bless Sierra and her friends and family in the wake of this horrific news.
B ”
blink – do you think then that Sierra knew who Antolin was? I know that LE were stating at one point that they thought she was abducted by someone that she knew.
I do.
B
LE did get this right and they kept the investigation sooooo quiet! I must apologize to Mom’s BF as I had accused him of maybe being someone who did something to Sierra. Poor little girl…such a big creep to look at and the last face she ever saw! All of this is horrible!! Now if they can only bring her home to rest in a peaceful place where her family can visit her.
I do hope that LE in Isa’s case is just as quiet on their grind as much as these folks! Hopefully they know a ton more than they let on!!!
Blink,
Thank you so much for covering this.
RIP Sierra, so so sorry.
wanted to bring this over, the sketch resembles him a bunch , IMO
labubske
Monkey Junky
Online
Posts: 1430
Re: Sierra Lamar #2 4/21/12 –
« Reply #112 on: May 22, 2012, 09:17:19 AM »
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This is interesting…when looking up the Safeway in Morgan Hill:
http://www.fugitive.com/2009/03/24/assault-morgan-hill-sketch-of-unknown-suspect-who-attacked-women-safeway/
On March 19, a 36-year-old Morgan Hill woman reported she was followed to her car in the parking lot of the East Dunne Avenue Safeway, shortly before 11 p.m. About 30 minutes later, police received a call that another woman was attacked in a Safeway parking lot, this time at the 235 Tennant Station location. The woman, a 46-year-old San Martin resident, told police the man used a stun gun on the back of her neck and head. The man fled when a passerby heard the woman’s screams.All three women offered similar descriptions of their attacker. Police are searching for a man in his late 20s or early 30s, about 5 feet 10 inches tall, and weighing about 200 pounds. In each case the man also entered, or tried to enter, the victim’s car through the rear driver-side door in a Safeway parking lot after dark.Police are asking residents to be cautious when walking or driving in shopping center parking lots. Swing recommended parking in well-lit areas and remaining aware of surroundings while walking.Police have distributed e-mail warnings to residents in Morgan Hill, unincorporated southern Santa Clara County, and other nearby locations. Anyone with information on these attacks should call.
Interesting also, is that it is the same time of year as when Sierra was abducted.
He is linked to 2 other attacks. I dont know if it is these, but the stun gun thing makes sense.
They have not said so, but I am aware of physical evidence in this case that would lead to believe that was possible.
B
I also think Sierra may have known this guy. Young girls can be fooled by older guys very easily.He worked nearby at the safeway market. Maybe Sierra sometimes shopped there. I don’t know if there are many convenience stores in the area, so maybe she and friends went there for soda, etc. I am hoping and praying he tells LE where her body is so she can have a proper burial. Yes, LE did a great job on this case. Sometimes, we want to know everything immediately, but we need to be patient and let them do their jobs. They are the experts. (in most cases)
God bless and receive this dear young woman into the comfort of knowing there is a greater love than is known in this world, that there is peace beyond understanding, and that she is and will be eternally safe in the arms of her true father, her god.
Rest, Sierra, sweet baby girl.
Just watched the presser…. Was struck by the following:
-under survellience since 3/28 based on a DNA match through Codis
-linked to one of three assaults in Morgan Hill
-no indication Sierra knew or had any contact with the suspect
-no motive
Also, I am sure you have seen his myspace page blink, some of the things on there were concerning
All JMO
Do they really think he worked at the corner store and they never ran across each other?
B
The Safeway he worked at is 6.7 miles from her house.
She had only lived at Mom’s about a month prior to her missing didn’t she? I’m usually wrong on times, so forgive me! But he may have been one of those non-stop trollers constantly looking for the right person to grab. If he did notice her I bet it was only when shopping with Mom but then he discovered and out of the way area with a pretty little new girl walking to the bus stop alone. What a creep! I hope Big Bubba takes a liking to him in jail. Of course, this nut will get his own wing in jail for now.
This is so sad. I think we sort of knew what the outcome would be but it’s just so awful. Such a beautiful girl with an infectious smile and someone had to take that away. This case reminds me so much of Anne Grace Kasprzak who recently was killed by a 31 year old man, because she refused his advances. I believe Anne knew this man, which a 15 year old hanging around a 31 year old only means trouble. I don’t know what the case is here yet obviously. It just frightens me that these creeps are out there either stalking or just feeling like they can “take” someone they “want” and then do what they want. I know it’s been like this forever but it’s just so frustrating and sad.
It’s nice to see a case like this solved so quickly. I’m glad it seems that no family violence was involved. Her mother seemed off to me. She still does, actually. But I wish hope and healing for her, as well as all those who loved Sierra.
RIP, Sierra.
The clothes found in her bag…were they the same clothes that she left the house in that morning? Or was she planning on going somewhere else after school that required her to have a change of clothes?
I just find it odd that there was DNA in the bag but the clothes were folded ‘neatly’. I would think if this guy raped her and/or stripped off her clothes – he wouldn’t waste time to ‘neatly’ fold them.
Oh Blink you are so right about parents needing to review what their children and teens post in social media. One of my daughter’s first boyfriends committed suicide years ago and once I read his chat posts it was fairly obvious he was suicidal. Hindsight is not very comforting. I’m so thankful this guy was caught. Prayers for the family.
The stun gun was also used in a willow glen attempted abduction of a teen girl. The attacker used a red vehicle in that case also.
LE says they have a weapon possibly used in one of those other cases suggesting this fellow may have done this before.
To make it worse The 21 year suspect has a wife who is pregnant.
He is a local and has lived here for years.
His sister says he is innocent.
In my opinion .. This really narrows down the search area.!!
Everybody here feels terrible for Marleen, sister Danielle and Sierra’s father. Marleens boyfriend has put in many hours of searches.
They are wonderful people and we have all done our best to support them in this time.
We will continue and Sierra will be found with or without the suspects help and allowing LE to do their job. They are the best !
jmho
Garcia-Torres attended a Morgan Hill continuation school, Central High School. He lives in a trailer park in the city with his mother, wife and 18-month-old daughter. Several “Missing” fliers of Sierra are taped around the park, including one on a lamp post 25 yards from Garcia-Torres’ home.
The Garcia-Torres property is strewn with garbage, baby strollers and sippy cups.
The suspect’s mother, Laura Torres, arrived home from her night shift as a nurse at a convalescent home to find reporters waiting near her trailer.
She said she spoke to her son Monday night and was distraught about his arrest.
“He said, ‘Don’t worry about me, mom. I am going to be OK,’ ” Torres said. “I told my son, ‘Well, if you didn’t do it, you don’t have anything to worry about.’ ”
She added, “He would say, “Mom, I have never seen that lady,’ ” referring to Sierra. “He said, ‘I have nothing to do with this.’ ”
Torres said her son was “always quiet, always respectful, always close to me. It is unbelievable that this is happening to him. I feel like all of this is wrong. … What parent wants to believe their son did something wrong?”
Garcia-Torres’ father is in jail in Santa Clara County and his brother recently died in Mexico after a life of drinking and drug abuse, Torres said.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/05/22/BA1P1OLN18.DTL#ixzz1vdD3ZFfb
I assume the body has not been recovered. If the perp is claiming to have never seen Sierra it’s unlikely he will divulge details of the dump site. Hopefully LE will bring this beautiful teenager home soon.
Blink I so admire you, your team and everyone on ScaredMonkeys for your tireless efforts to help bring home the missing. It breaks my heart everytime I read or hear about a new case but being a mother of an 11 yr old it especially breaks my heart when it is at the hands of a parent or loved one. I will never understand how someone can just throw away such a precious gift from God.
I don’t post often, but I wonder if anyone else noticed the demonic image in the picture of Antolin smoking an unknown substance on his myspace page? It appears in the very end of the smoke cloud that he is blowing out of his mouth. I noticed it instantly when viewing his pictures. I have seen the look of evil before but never quite in this form. It just further proves that evil is truly all around us and most of the time, we never even see it.
My thoughts and prayers are with Sierra’s family, I am so, so sorry for what has happened to your beautiful little girl. May God wrap you in his gentle embrace.
Also under his photos on his myspace account are pictures of a lake, a firepit, a picture of hot charcoals and a picture of a street sign about a park. I know these pictures are dated 2007 and the lake and the park may not even be in that area but you never know if it is places he is familiar with and visits often, they may want to check for her there. This is definately not his first time at the rodeo. IMO.
http://www.myspace.com/303044008/videos/funny-stuff/31283610
Him saying to his mother that he never saw her, means nothing. How will he explain his DNA on her belongings if he’s never seen her? Maybe he never looked at her but he certainly was with her.
Here is the link to the photo I was referring to.
http://www.myspace.com/303044008/photos/3705504#%7B%22ImageId%22%3A3705504%7D
What is he cooking in the myspace video??
Natasha Cahela
Thank you for your info..
I knew this case was not going to end well. Too much time and nothing found of the girl.
Somehow society must find a way to stop young girls from getting involved with older men. It rarely turns out well. Just stopping to talk to an unknown older man is not a wise act.
If the other cases can be tied to this one, it will prove that he is a predator of the worst kind. The fact that he is married and has a child does not stop his crazy need to control women. Living with his mother is another clue that mom is in control and he wants to be.
I hope LE can get him to tell them what he did with the body. The family can at least have some closure from that.
She was a beautiful child. My prayers for the family.
The one thing I’ve learned since becoming a Blinkster is the only 100% or at least 99.9% absolute forensic science is DNA. Since Mr. Garcia-Torres is denying even or having seen her proves he is a LIAR!!! No way his DNA is on the clothing she was wearing that morning if he wasn’t with her that morning, so he is lying.
Sadly, he is entitle to an attorney and that attorney will likely have him lie about some chance encounter that will explain his innocent contact with her by chance, etc. etc. etc.
Kudos to LE in this one, I sincerely hope other LE agencies will study the approach and success of this case. No doubt they got lucky in having a match in the database, but still…they deserve Kudos.
One thing I’m assuming is Mr. Garcia-Torres made his mistake in planting the evidence found…ala her handbag with clothing…after the fact. I’m guessing he was hoping to stage a “runaway” or just needed to get rid of the evidence before his wife found it???? I don’t think it was thrown out in the moments after her abduction MOO. Not sure what he thought to accomplish, but it was his undoing and for that mistake, I’m grateful.
Prayers for Sierra to be found and closure for her family.
Oh goodness, this is so heartbreaking. So hoping LE got it all right here. I kept holding out hope for a family drama/”I’ll show you, mom” situation.
As for the found handbag/clothing….makes no sense to me a male perp like this would think through a plot to plant/stage evidence. But a family member might after learning of/suspecting his involvement….wife, mother, maybe?
glad you are ok Loni!
B
Re: Monkeybunny @ May 22, 2012 at 8:12 pm
Based on many replays of the video and many Google searches (please don’t think I’m a crackhead!) my best guess for what is being cooked in the Myspace video would be crack. I would guess that they are using a bong that is a Hookah (used to smoke flavored tobacco, but also probably marijuana)– the silver dish at the top of the bong in the video gives it away for me, and the topmost white part of the bong is the “ceramic bowl” (see link below). One would pack tobacco in the bowl part to smoke it, drawing the smoke through the blue tubing that appears in the video. But since they clearly aren’t smoking tobacco, they have to cover the bowl with tin foil and maybe poke tiny holes in the foil (?) (I read that somewhere online).
On the other hand, I was able to find that heroin and meth can come in white rocks like that, but I can’t find as much info about how those items would be smoked (if at all). Blink may know better than I, and I’m 100% sure that the police know exactly what it is.
Aside from the video evidence (which I hope LE has viewed and saved), I would guess that it is definitely hard drugs, especially considering the comments of his previous landlord– (paraphrasing) “they kept pitbulls on the property and allowed non-tenants to stay there”. Sounds like a drug house to me.
Here are relevant links:
Hookah Pipe: http://www.cigarette-store.org/gallery/default/original/13472/hookah.gif?1301922556
Homemade Crack Pipe/Bong: http://www.photographersdirect.com/buyers/stockphoto.asp?imageid=1650677
Comments by Former Landlord: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/05/22/BA1P1OLN18.DTL#ixzz1vdD3ZFfb
The Myspace Video in Question: http://www.myspace.com/303044008/videos
Natasha, good suggestion (to consider all of the locations that appear in Antolin’s Myspace photos.
I’m sure that LE has already gone through all of the rest of the photos, but check out his album “Pets”. There is a photo of a (dead?) bat in a water bottle or bag (?) with the caption/title “Blood”. There is a photograph of a dead bird captioned “not my falt”. Also a photo of a dead (?) beaver under a fallen tree captioned “sh*t happens”. Perhaps I’m over analyzing or reading into it too much, but 3 out of 15 photos of animals– one fifth of the pictures– are of dead animals. The captions for these images seem to suggest humor at the animals’ death or suffering. Finally, I don’t know if it means anything or not, but it seems that the photos of his household pets are nice while the photos of animals that don’t belong to him– or that perhaps he doesn’t care about– are all suffering or dead. Maybe this shows that while he can have a wife and a child, and a mother with whom he has a decent relationship, he can have no empathy for other women/people with whom he does not have a close personal relationship.
I’m sure this all of this discussion is pointless because ultimately, they have his DNA.
BlackPearl, I don’t think the discussion is pointless because it helps us to better understand the mind of these sickos.
The reason I pointed out the pics of the lake, etc. was because IMO it was a little strange to post those pics. Sure we all have pics of beautiful lake views, wildlife, vacation photos, etc. but that’s not the way his came across to me. I’m not saying Sierra is there but if he has done this before or has been planning it for awhile, maybe he was leaving clues. Maybe I’m way off here but it definately doesn’t hurt to check things out.
As far as the dead animals, that is sick! Nobody in their right mind would post something like that again IMO. and as we all know these sickos usually start with animals.
It is pretty interesting to look at his myspace photos. In some regards, especially in the older photos, he looks like just a typical boy. Then there are the drug shots. A person has to be pretty immersed in a pro-drug culture to post pics of himself doing a big hit of pot. He looks like he gained a significant amount of weight over the last few years. No girl activity on the page, which is interesting too because he wasn’t bad looking before the weight gain. I wonder what fellow we are going to discovery once he is clean for a week or two and the layers start to unravel. Thank God for DNA evidence. I never would have picked this guy for anything more than a druggy loser.
Black Pearl, great analysis on the dead animals.
Does anyone know what his dad is in prison for?
obviously he is narcistic, lacks empathy, thrives on his mothers attention…devalues others, lies, has alternate lifestyles and can easily move among them, (chameleon tendancies) no interpersonal relationship with others. But can maintain a relationship with his OWN family. Amazing to me how these people aren’t identified early in their lives. He has bound to have had problems in his earlier childhood and preteen, that doesnt reflect on a criminal record.. that would be school records or Juvie records.
There are flags if we just look for them or dont glaze over them because after all they come from good families or good parents or go to church or are on yada yada organizations. Does a good family or good mother make good kids…NO…. parenting, it is all the same if that child does not have structure and some sort of education and is not taught things not just told things. AND Some sort of structured consequencial decipline! I know some kids like this here guy, and most people give them a pass on things they do. adults are too scared to say anything, scared of the ramifications as a result of butting in and peers are often left with less than better themselves…pot calling the kettle scenerio….usually birds of the feathers flock together! when i see kids like this in a few of these organizations i am involved in…(community organizations) I raise my eyebrows at times on some of the things they get away with…and i bring up scenerios too on their later life…just waiting for these kids to grow up, i usually try to give the kids some advice when i can and let them know what people will think years down the road if they continue their questionable behaviors…My first question is when i see things happen…Just because it may not be illegal to do this or that, does it make it morally right? and my next question is, Are you comfortable with your parents finding out if they happen to see/hear you do that? If you think your parents dont care, who do you think would care? What if that person found out about your actions or behavior? Final question is, If you knew this would be the last thing you did while on earth, would you be doing this? i make a point to tell them, You have to think about what you are doing before you do things, it may be your last, or worse it may be something people remember you for for the rest of your life….be memorable but be morally straight and reverent to the laws and your life and how sometimes how it affects others!
Natasha, I wouldn’t think he was leaving “clues” exactly through his Myspace photos, but following your line of thinking, perhaps he was creating mementos or souvenirs (IF he has indeed committed crimes like this before and IF he used these locations as dump sites). It would be interesting to know not only when he posted the photos to Myspace, but also when the photos were uploaded to his computer and when the photos were actually taken, as all three dates could be different.
I’m wondering if the places he photographed are locations where he went by himself or with friends to do drugs. He posted documentation of his drug use on his Myspace page, so it’s not a huge leap to think that he may have been taking other pictures while he was high. The place(s) in the photos could be a secluded place(s) where he could go to do drugs and wouldn’t get caught by his mother, girlfriend, LE or the general public. If this is the case– that he saw the locations depicted in these photos as secluded, “safe” spots– it’s totally plausible that he may have hidden Sienna’s body or other evidence (related to Sienna or other crimes) in the vicinity.
Oh let me make a point here just a minute too, i am not ain any way giving him a pass….or making excuses or trying to justify his means…I am saying i do not condone this at all and find it kind of repulsive that parents of these individuals want to defend them, why not just teach them and give them the instramental tools society needs for them to have in order to be productive parts in their communities..instead of letting them skirt tail until they are of age then berely have enough education to keep them motivated to getting a decent job, most of these flunkies can berely hold down a job, berely pay bills, live off the government, sponge off friends and family….and they have no real means of supporting themselves …let alone the children they themselves produce, it turns into a vicious cycle, and lifestyle for many. It becomes generational!
i say to these mothers that just dont give a crap…Your child may beat the crap out of my child on the inner city playground, but IF I HAVE MY WAY ABOUT IT, my child and YOUR CHILD will never have to see the day when a child has to be on a playground with less than a few adults that really do care. I vote for inner city youth organizations and community service projects for inner city under privledged kids. I have a better than high school education and i make over 120,000. a year. I have never had a need for anything but feel compassion for those that do need things. I dont mind helping for preventions sake, but i cant standit when my tax money goes to public defenders defending this kind of garbage. YOU do the crime, YOU Do the time. and i dont believe in early release! I think they should bring back death penalty across the nation, especially if you’re a homicidal maniac or hurt/kill children.
Twinkletoes, I don’t know why the perp’s dad is in jail. I was able to find a database of inmates incarcerated in California, but didn’t have time to go through all the pages of results. I’ll provide a link below if you want to try. It’s obviously a game of playing connect the dots not knowing his first name, “middle” name, or exactly where he is incarcerated. I read somewhere that he is incarcerated in the Santa Clara County Jail which is referred to as “Elmwood”. Going off the last name of Garcia, you can try to see if there are any inmates in the system being housed at Elmwood or Santa Clara. If he is not being held at Elmwood, then we probably have too many unknowns to solve the equation. Following are links– one to try to get you directly to the page of results, the second to the starting page in case the first doesn’t work (just type in the last name of “Garcia”).
http://inmatelocator.cdcr.ca.gov/Results.aspx
http://inmatelocator.cdcr.ca.gov/
I hate to show what I might know but that is a clear dish and the other guy is holding tongs and picking up the metal part(the bowl)of a water bong and he is heating it so they can scrape the resin out of it which is a “poor man’s hash” and smoke that. That is what you do when you just gotta have a toke and you are out of bud! If you notice the guy in front of the glass plate blows very hard to put out fire/cool down metal piece so I promise you that if they had coke or meth on that plate no body would blow out in the plate’s direction! OMG, I shouldn’t know all this. I even asked my hubby what they were doing out of the clear blue and he said “cleaning the bowl of a bong or pipe”. That was after I had to explain why I am watching some man do this in a video! lol
Yes, BlackPearl, I did the inmate finder too, but too darn many Garcias.
/ I was hoping for maybe a shared first name but no luck.
Does anyone know dad’s first name?
And as someone noted, his unsealed criminal history starts in 2009. If he is 21 now, he was 18 in 2009 and stepping into his big boy criminal record. I would love to see what the dirt bag had for a juvie record.
He had been arrested for assault and not prosicuted as a Juvenile.
He got into a fist fight with a young fellow he considered a drug addict that lived at his home.
Apparently mom likes to allow other people to live with them in exchange for small amout of rent.
Here is a situation.. It is a common when living such as they do for people to loan out their insured and registered vehicles to others that live with them in exchange for gasoline or money.
All of us hope that the cameras that caught the vehicle also caught the driver and that driver is in fact him.
LE has been monitoring him and others who were considered suspect since march 28
LE focus is water and I assume that is for a reason.
You can’t send something like that, no.
B
He told his mom he was going fishing on the day of the 16th of March.
Before moving to the trailer park, Garcia-Torres and his family were thrown out of a Morgan Hill farmhouse in the summer of 2010 for keeping pit bulls on the property and allowing nontenants to stay there, one of their landlords said. She spoke on condition of anonymity, saying she was concerned for her privacy.
“They were the nightmare that never ended,” the landlord said.
ead more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/05/22/BA1P1OLN18.DTL#ixzz1viBOLgpN
@edward says:
May 23, 2012 at 8:02 pm
He told his mom he was going fishing on the day of the 16th of March.
That would certainly explain why the focus of her search has been on water. Scott Peterson flashback moment.
Here is a link: http://news.yahoo.com/video/montereyksbw-18229918/sierra-lamar-murder-suspect-i-was-fishing-29444228.html#crsl=%252Fvideo%252Fmontereyksbw-18229918%252Fsierra-lamar-murder-suspect-i-was-fishing-29444228.html
Prayers for Sierra’s family.
I wonder if “fishing” was the excuse he used to scope out potential victims or actually attacking them?
The obvious question is where did he do his fishing? I am sure LE has covered that and checked those areas for Sierra. Would he take her somewhere that he thought he could not be tied to? If he stalked her Blink does that make him organized?
I wonder if ATG went fishing often? Did he have the gear to go fishing (fishing rod, tackle box, etc.)? If not, did he borrow or rent such equipment? Did he ever go fishing with friends? If he did, I hope that they are telling police all the various locations that they fished. Did he ever actually bring any fish home (I’m reminded of the scene in Brokeback Mountain where Michelle William’s character Alma confronts Ennis about never bringing any fish home every time he “went fishing” and that’s how she knew he was lying all those years). Answers to these questions will give us information.
Melissab, I also wonder if “fishing” was a code word for something else. It could mean that he was going out to the woods to smoke weed. Or it could mean that he was going out on the prowl, looking for potential victims.