Man in notorious taser video arrested in Utuado

Prosecutors charged Francisco Torres Maestre in absentia after several attempts were made in previous days to serve him with a subpoena.

By The Star Staff

Officers assigned to the Puerto Rico Police Bureau arrested on Thursday a man who had been charged the previous day for obstruction of justice in an incident reported in December in Utuado.

During that incident, police used a taser to detain a woman who reportedly is the partner of the man arrested Thursday.

According to the police, the man was taken by surprise in the morning hours in front of a grocery store in Utuado’s La Granja neighborhood. He was identified as Francisco Torres Maestre.

Torres Maestre was arrested after prosecutors charged him in absentia after several attempts were made in previous days to serve him with a subpoena.

The 32-year-old man, a resident of Utuado, allegedly appears in the videos of the intervention that officer Eric Matos executed last month at a fast food restaurant in Utuado, during which the taser was used to achieve the arrest of Amanda Santiago López for obstruction of justice.

Officer Osvaldo Torres, under the supervision of Sgt. Harry Rosado, both of the Special Arrests Division, placed Torres Maestre under arrest without resistance on Thursday, according to the police report. In addition, they reported that the man has a criminal record for controlled substances and violation of the weapons law, among other crimes.

At press time, Torres Maestre remained in a cell at the Utuado precinct waiting for processing under the arrest warrant against him, which includes a $10,000 bail.