DNA Match Leads to Arrest in 2020 Tyler Assault Case

(KNUE-FM) Recently there was a DNA match that led to an East Texas man being arrested for a 2020 sexual assault of a teen girl that took place in an abandoned building in Tyler. According to CBS 19, 33-year-old Martin Torres has been booked into the Smith County Jail on charges of sexual assault of a child and has a bond of $750,000.

How the DNA Match Led to the Arrest

The arrest documents show that a recent DNA match is what led to the arrest of Torres, with the incident taking place back in June 2020 and the victim being a 14-year-old girl.

Law enforcement was first notified about the DNA match in September 2025. The potential suspect was Torres, and at that time he was already in custody on unrelated charges in the Hutchins State Prison.

READ MORE: 1987 East Texas Murder Solved by DNA Testing

What Happened in the 2020 Case

In 2020 the victim in the case said that she and her sister met a man who took them to an abandoned building with a mattress where they laid down to sleep. That is when the assault on the 14-year-old took place. Police were able to collect a DNA sample but didn’t find a match until recently.

The two sisters were living at a group home and ran away when they met the man at a park and he invited them to stay with him and offered the girls marijuana.

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What the Suspect Told Investigators

After smoking some of the substance, the victim reports that she “could barely move”. That feeling wore off. Later, when they moved to the abandoned building and she smoked again, the assault took place.

The girls fell asleep, and they both left the building as the sun came up. They were found later that evening.

When approached by law enforcement Torres says that during that time he was staying at the Salvation Army and didn’t stay in abandoned buildings. He said he had many encounters with females during that time.

Torres acknowledged the incident with the girl on the mattress, but not all the details lined up. Which is when police obtained a search warrant for a DNA sample which showed a high probability that he was the suspect.