Del Rio man arrested after coin machine theft attempt, meth found

A routine call to a convenience store in the 100 block of Dr. Fermin Calderon Blvd. turned into a drug and property-crime arrest after Del Rio police say Victor Alonso Torres tried to pry open a coin-operated machine with a knife.

Officers responded at about 10:33 a.m. on April 29 after a caller reported an unwanted man in a pink shirt working at the machine. When officers arrived, they found a man matching that description and made contact with him. During the search, police recovered a knife, a clear container holding a crystal-like substance, and two smoking pipes commonly used to inhale narcotics.

The crystal-like substance later tested positive for methamphetamine, according to the report. Police also said surveillance video showed the suspect trying to remove money from the coin machine with the knife, giving investigators both the public-safety call and the property-crime evidence needed to build the case.

Torres, 42, was issued a Criminal Trespass Warning banning him from the business. He was also cited for Failure to Identify after initially refusing to give his name, and for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Police arrested him on a charge of Possession of a Controlled Substance Penalty Group 1/1-B greater than or equal to 1 gram and less than 4 grams.

After processing at the police station, Torres was released to the GEO Correctional Facility pending magistration.

The case underscores the kind of low-level but disruptive problem that can shape day-to-day safety concerns around convenience stores and nearby businesses in Del Rio. A single report about an attempted theft can quickly become a broader enforcement matter when officers find drugs, paraphernalia and a suspect who is already on notice to stay away from the property.

That response also fits the Del Rio Police Department’s stated mission: protecting citizens and property, preventing crime, enforcing laws and maintaining order. For Val Verde County residents, the incident is a reminder that the most ordinary calls for service can expose a deeper mix of theft, trespass and narcotics activity that businesses and patrol officers have to confront in real time. The FBI’s UCR Program, which gathers crime and law-enforcement data from more than 19,000 agencies nationwide and publishes monthly updates, offers one way to place those local arrests in a broader public-safety picture.