Joseph Victor "JoJo" Torres, a 19-year-old Hispanic/Latino man from Sheboygan, Wisconsin, was fatally shot on the evening of January 17, 2026, during an encounter inside a residence in the 1300 block of South 10th Street, near Alabama Avenue. Sheboygan police and other first responders were dispatched shortly after 8 p.m. and found Torres critically wounded. Reports describing the criminal complaints said he was unconscious and had suffered gunshot wounds to his head or neck, chest, and abdomen. He was rushed to Aurora Medical Center in Sheboygan County, where he died from his injuries. His girlfriend, Natalie Gonzalez, was also wounded in the attack and survived.
Investigators came to believe the violence was connected to a planned gun transaction. According to criminal complaints summarized in local reporting, two Milwaukee residents, Lawrence S. Buford Jr. and Onterio M. Girley, allegedly traveled to Sheboygan intending to meet Torres to trade firearms. A witness told police that there had been discussion suggesting Buford intended to rob Torres instead. The same witness reportedly told investigators that Buford later admitted to shooting Torres. These allegations became an important part of the prosecution's case, although both defendants have denied guilt and no conviction had been reported in the most recent available coverage.
Gonzalez later described the sudden outbreak of violence inside the residence. She said she heard yelling from another room and then heard gunfire. She attempted to take cover, but an armed man whose face was largely concealed allegedly entered the room where she was located and opened fire. According to accounts of the criminal complaint, Gonzalez was wounded near her shoulder and back. She said the shooter fired at her from close range and continued shooting while she was on the floor. Despite her injuries, she survived and was initially treated locally before being transferred to a Green Bay hospital. Gonzalez later recalled that Torres expressed his love for her during his final moments before emergency personnel took him away.
The suspects had left before officers arrived, prompting a homicide investigation that quickly focused on people police believed were known to the victims. Authorities said information from members of the community helped detectives identify a suspect as early as the day after the shooting. Buford was arrested in Milwaukee on January 27, 2026, and Girley was taken into custody two days later. Police said the arrests resulted from coordinated investigative efforts involving Sheboygan authorities and other law-enforcement agencies.
Prosecutors subsequently filed several serious charges. Buford was charged with first-degree intentional homicide in Torres' death, attempted first-degree intentional homicide in connection with the surviving victim, possession of a firearm by a felon, and armed robbery with use of force as a party to a crime. The charges were filed with repeater allegations, and his cash bail was set at $1 million. Girley was charged with felony murder connected to armed robbery as a party to a crime, also with a repeater allegation. His cash bail was set at $500,000. The prosecution's theory identified Buford as the alleged shooter while accusing Girley of participating in the robbery that authorities say led to the killing.
Both defendants pleaded not guilty and were eventually bound over for trial after the court found sufficient probable cause for the cases to proceed. Early court proceedings were delayed several times, including because of problems obtaining public defenders. Girley at one point sought to represent himself, but proceedings were delayed so legal counsel could be appointed. His attorney later received hundreds of pages of discovery material, which contributed to additional scheduling delays. Both cases remained active in Sheboygan County Circuit Court.
Girley was initially scheduled for a four-day jury trial beginning August 18, 2026. That trial did not take place as originally scheduled. In early August, his attorney withdrew a demand for a speedy trial, and the judge approved the withdrawal, resulting in the trial being postponed. Girley was instead scheduled for a status conference on the date the trial had been expected to begin. Buford was also awaiting further proceedings. As of the most recent online reporting available, neither defendant had been convicted in connection with Torres' death, and the criminal cases remained pending.
Torres was widely known to relatives and friends as "JoJo." His family remembered him as loving, compassionate, humorous, and deeply devoted to the people close to him. His aunt spoke publicly about how strongly he cared for his family, while Gonzalez described the future the two had hoped to build together. What authorities allege began as a planned firearm transaction ended with Torres dead, Gonzalez seriously wounded, and two defendants facing major felony charges as his family continued waiting for the criminal cases to reach a resolution.
