Account
May 31, 2018
Apr 07, 2020
Jose
Herran
64
56
66 inches
68 inches
175 lbs
180 lbs
Hispanic / Latino
Male
In the autumn of 2015, a 56-year-old man named Jose Herran, also known as Pepe, vanished from Foster Township, Pennsylvania. He had recently moved to the area from New Jersey, staying at a boarding house owned by an acquaintance, Roberto Torner. Herran was a Cuban exile who maintained a close relationship with his mother, Virginia Rodriguez, who lived in West New York, New Jersey. He was known to call her regularly, and a call on her birthday, November 17th, was a yearly tradition he never missed. The silence on her birthday in 2015 was the first sign to his family that something was terribly wrong, prompting them to report him missing. Investigators later determined that Herran was likely killed between October 13 and November 17, 2015. The investigation into Jose Herran's disappearance stretched on for years, a painful period of uncertainty for his loved ones. It was a complex case that eventually unraveled a sinister plot. Investigators learned that Herran had become acquainted with Roberto Torner and another man, David Alzugaray, sometime before the summer of 2015. It is believed that Herran was working as a confidential informant for the FBI, providing information on drug and weapons trafficking in the Philadelphia area, which may have made him a target. The relationship between Herran, Torner, and Alzugaray soured, escalating into a plan to end Herran's life. The investigation involved multiple law enforcement agencies, including federal, state, and local authorities, who conducted numerous interviews and executed search warrants. A significant breakthrough came in May 2018 when a forensic team searched a trailer on a property owned by Torner. There, they discovered human blood traces under the carpet and bone fragments in outdoor burn pits. The grim details of Jose Herran's final moments eventually came to light. It was revealed that he had been lured to Torner's secluded property, where he was shot and killed. Afterward, his body was dismembered, and his remains were disposed of in the Lehigh River, with other evidence being burned in a pit on the property. In February 2020, nearly five years after Herran was last seen, the Luzerne County District Attorney's Office announced that criminal homicide charges had been filed against both David Alzugaray and Roberto Torner. Alzugaray was also charged with abuse of a corpse, and Torner faced an additional charge of criminal solicitation. The investigation was a testament to the persistent efforts of law enforcement who pieced together the evidence, including the recovery of cutting instruments and the suspected murder weapon, a .22 caliber revolver. This brought a painful end to the years of not knowing for Herran's family, confirming their worst fears but also providing the first steps toward justice for their beloved Jose.
Oct 11, 2015
Foster Township
Pennsylvania
Luzerne County
No
37383
Pennsylvania State Police
West Hazleton
Pennsylvania
Luzerne County
18202
Brian Noll
Corporal
250 Dessen Drive, Pennsylvania
5704593890
State
Law Enforcement
PA2018-209148
2015-12-15
Pennsylvania State Police
na
Gray or Partially Gray
Brown
Brown
05/23/2026
