Inset: Leonard Torres, Potter County Sheriff’s Office.
Background: The street in Amarillo, Texas, where Torres allegedly buried a woman’s body behind a garage (Google Maps).
Texas authorities have locked up a man who killed a woman and buried her behind a garage.
Leonard Torres, 48, faces a murder charge for the death of 31‑year‑old Faith Smith, according to the Amarillo Police Department.
Police launched the investigation earlier this month after receiving a tip that the victim had been shot and buried.
Detectives followed the tip, interviewing witnesses who corroborated the shooting, according to an ABC affiliate KVII report.
Investigators believe Smith was shot to death inside a car.
Police identified Torres as the suspect and arrested him after he ignored an attempted traffic stop on Thursday. At the time of his arrest, he was driving the vehicle linked to the case, a car he was known to operate.
Law enforcement traced the car to the Rama Motel on East Amarillo Boulevard. After securing a warrant, officers followed Torres as he exited the motel and a nearby convenience store, then tried to stop him when he made an un‑signaled turn.
Torres attempted to flee, but the chase ended when another police vehicle cut him off and blocked his route. He now faces charges for evading arrest with a vehicle and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Detectives quickly used the arrest to pinpoint the makeshift burial site. They arrived at a house on Orange Street and discovered the woman buried behind a detached garage under construction.
When questioned, Torres reportedly admitted to shooting Smith in the head, claiming it was accidental, and also acknowledged burying her where she was discovered.
According to the charging document, the fatal incident occurred on Sept. 27 while Torres and Smith sat in the backseat of a car driven by a criminal informant. After the shooting, Torres allegedly moved the body and buried it near the garage, the informant reported.
The complaint says Torres threatened the informant after the shooting, pointing his handgun at the woman driving the car and warning that he would kill her or her family if she spoke about Smith’s death.
He is now being held without bond at the Potter County Detention Center.
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