Family of man killed by Olivia police officer requests FBI investigation

OLIVIA, Minn. (FOX 9) - Wednesday night, neighbors and loved ones of 32-year-old Ricardo Torres gathered for a vigil and demanded answers after the man was shot and killed by an Olivia, Minnesota police officer Sunday. 

Candles lit the event as Torres’s loved ones brought flowers. They also donned signs and T-shirts that read "Justice for Ricky" as they seek answers for the shooting carried out by Officer Aaron Clouse. 

Family members say they are concerned because the officer and Torres had a history. 

A criminal complaint obtained by FOX 9 showed Clouse arrested Torres two years ago for outstanding warrants related to disorderly conduct. Clouse deployed his Taser in the arrest. 

That history, the family says, warrants an FBI investigation. 

"Please come in and help," said Natasha Linder, Torres’s girlfriend and the mother of Torres’s child. "He didn’t deserve this. Family is hurt. This officer not only targeted him, but targeted a lot of people."

According to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the shooting happened around 2:20 a.m. on Sunday in an alley near the 800 block of East Lincoln Avenue. An ambulance took Torres to a hospital, where he later died. Crime scene investigators found a shotgun near where Torres was shot, the BCA state.

Sources close to police told FOX 9 Officer Clouse was confronted by Torres in the alley. Clouse thought he was staring straight down the barrel of a sawed-off shotgun from just a few feet away and when Torres refused to drop the weapon, Clouse opened fire.

According to the BCA, Crouse is on standard administrative leave. The incident is still under investigation and the BCA is asking anyone with information to come forward.