In the early morning hours of September 19, 2024, a dispute on Buffalo's West Side turned fatal, ending the life of 35-year-old Travis A. Martin. The Hispanic/Latino man was shot in the chest around 4:22 a.m. near the intersection of 7th and Jersey streets. Emergency responders arrived at the scene and transported Martin to Erie County Medical Center where he was later pronounced dead.
The investigation by the Buffalo Police Department quickly led to a suspect. Raymond J.
Torres, 35 years old at the time of the incident, was arrested in connection with the fatal shooting. He was subsequently charged with second-degree murder. Friends and family remembered Martin as a gentle and loyal soul who was a good friend and a talented artist. He was a father who loved his family dearly.
In February 2025, Raymond J. Torres, who had no permanent address, pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of Manslaughter in the First Degree. This plea was made in full satisfaction of the indictment against him. On May 12, 2025, a judge sentenced Torres, then 36, to 19 years in prison, to be followed by five years of post-release supervision. He was sentenced as a second violent felony offender. The case was prosecuted by the Homicide Bureau of the Erie County District Attorney's Office, with the diligent work of Buffalo Police Department detectives being credited for bringing the case to a conviction.
