Brandon Man Dies During Riverview Robbery, Deputies Say

RIVERVIEW, FL — A 24-year-old Brandon man is dead following an armed robbery attempt in Riverview Tuesday afternoon.

According to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, a man wearing a bandana over his face, armed with a 9mm handgun, attempted to rob a man standing behind the ACE Beverage Castle, 9401 S. U.S. 301, just after noon on Tuesday.

“That man indicated he had nothing to give, so the suspect forced him into an office doorway inside the (business),” the sheriff’s office wrote in an email. Once inside the office, the man tried to rob the father-and-son owners of the store.

Deputies say one of the owners, a licensed permit holder, pulled out his own firearm and shot the would-be robber multiple times.

The man was taken to Tampa General Hospital where he died shortly after arrival, the email said. He has been identified as Joel Alberto Torres of Harness Horse Lane in Brandon.

Deputies have not released the names of the stores’ owners. The case remains under investigation with no charges filed at this time.

Booking photo of Torres from a prior arrest courtesy of the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office

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