Suvechha Sarkar
In the late fall of 2015, the community of Freeland, Pennsylvania, was shaken by an act of violence that claimed the life of Jose Herran, affectionately known as Pepe. He had close ties to his family, but his disappearance wasn’t reported until a month after he was last seen. The investigation spanned 5 years and unraveled a chilling tale of betrayal and vengeance. The case came into focus on Investigation Discovery’s ‘The Friday the 13th Murders: Feared Silent.’ It explores how a simple day took a deadly turn, in addition to featuring interviews and investigative details that helped bring the killer to justice.
Jose Herran’s Death Was Classified as a Homicide Nearly 5 Years After His Disappearance
Lovingly known as Pepe, Jose Herran was the beloved son of his mother, Virginia Rodriguez, and his father. He was born in Cuba and grew up in a loving household. As Jose became an adult, he eventually moved to Freeland, Pennsylvania, as a Cuban exile. Within the next few years, he welcomed his daughter, Jasely Alvarez, into his life. According to her, Jose would light up any room he walked into and was loved by everyone. He also maintained a tight bond with his relatives overseas and was close to his mother. Jose often called Virginia, who lived in West New York, New Jersey. According to court records, Jose had a parole officer, which indicated that he might’ve had some run-ins with the law.
Reports further state that Jose worked as a confidential informant for the FBI regarding weapons and drug trafficking in the Philadelphia area. By 2015, Jose was residing at a boarding house called The Cottage at 559 Washington Street in Freeland. However, things changed by the late fall of that year. On November 17, 2015, Virginia never received a call from Jose on her birthday, which worried her since he had never missed it before. It led her to contact the authorities and report him missing. Virginia claimed that Jose had last called her around November 13 or 14 and had said he would call her on her birthday. As the investigation began, authorities discovered that the last call he made was on October 21.
Officials reportedly learned that his last confirmed sighting was on October 11 on a property at 6851 North Buck Mountain Road in Foster Township. For years, the detectives spoke with witnesses but couldn’t find any trace of Jose. Ultimately, in May 2018, the search of a trailer on the property by forensic experts uncovered a subfloor that had traces of human blood. Furthermore, reports indicate that they discovered male bone fragments in pits on the property. Unfortunately, the DNA obtained from them was inconclusive. Investigators initially suspected foul play. However, it wasn’t until February 2020 that they treated the case as a homicide, which was reportedly confirmed in court. They believed that he passed away between October 13 and November 17, 2015.
Confession and Witness Testimony Revealed the Killers
In the initial phase of the missing persons investigation, years passed without any notable leads. However, during that time, they discovered that Jose’s last known location was in North Buck Mountain, Foster Township. They further learned that Roberto Torner owned that property, alongside The Cottage, which was Jose’s last residence. According to court records, a witness, Donald Warren, came forward, who was previously employed by Roberto. He informed the investigators that he knew Roberto and his friend, David Alzugaray, had killed Jose in 2015. Reports state that Donald claimed that on the night Jose went missing, Roberto had told him about killing Jose and had allegedly asked him to join in the crime. Donald alleged that Roberto had shown him a .22 caliber revolver on that night.
According to court records, Donald informed the detectives that Roberto and David had returned that night without Jose. He claimed that they had told him about David shooting Jose in the head. According to his statements, Roberto and David then allegedly gave details about dismembering Jose and throwing some of the remains in the nearby Lehigh River. Ultimately, on May 1, 2018, investigators brought David in for questioning. Court records state that he confessed to killing Jose with Roberto’s help before dismembering the remains and disposing of some in the river. Moreover, he reportedly claimed to have burnt Jose’s clothes in pits in Roberto’s North Buck Mountain property. As a search warrant was executed at the location, officials uncovered the suspected .22 caliber murder weapon, along with bone fragments and traces of human blood.
Detectives also found knives and a machete, which were allegedly used to dismember Jose’s remains. Yet, when Roberto was questioned, he initially denied knowing about the murder. A few months later, he was again interrogated. Official records state that he then claimed to have reached the location after David had killed Jose. According to Roberto’s statements, David had allegedly told him that he killed Jose in self-defense. In February 2020, David was arrested, while Roberto was already in custody for unrelated charges. Both of them were charged with one count each of criminal homicide and criminal conspiracy to commit homicide. While David faced another count of abuse of a corpse, Roberto was charged with two more counts of criminal solicitation to commit homicide.
Roberto Torner and David Alzugaray Are Incarcerated at Separate Pennsylvania Prison Facilities Today
The jury trial of Roberto for the murder of Jose commenced on May 9, 2023. During the trial, the prosecution presented several pieces of forensic evidence found at the scene, along with numerous witnesses, including David, before the court. One of the witnesses was Roberto’s fiancée, Liza Robles. She reportedly testified that she had last seen Jose leaving with Roberto to burn piles of trash, but never saw him again. Court records state that she further testified that Roberto had allegedly told her that he and David shot Jose in the head and disposed of his remains in the river. Liza was reportedly granted immunity by the prosecution in return for her testimony.
Moreover, the prosecution presented two of Roberto’s former employees and residents of his property, who testified that he tried to appoint them to kill Jose. Prosecutors reportedly sought to introduce evidence of Roberto’s prior crimes, in which he had allegedly helped dismember human remains. However, the defense argued that he didn’t kill Jose. They alleged that David killed Jose in self-defense, and Roberto never participated in the murder. Ultimately, on May 18, 2023, he was convicted of first-degree murder, criminal conspiracy to commit criminal homicide, and criminal solicitation to commit criminal homicide. Roberto was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for murder and a consecutive term of 240 months to 480 months (20 to 40 years) for conspiracy on August 24, 2023.
On the other hand, David pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and criminal conspiracy to commit criminal homicide on October 19, 2023. By the following day, he was sentenced to 17 to 45 years in prison. Following Roberto’s conviction, he had appealed his sentencing on the grounds of the admissibility of his prior bad-acts evidence of dismemberment and the sufficiency of the evidence. However, on July 10, 2025, the Appellate Court upheld his judgment. As of writing, Roberto is serving his sentence at the State Correctional Institution – Rockview, in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, David is currently incarcerated at the State Correctional Institution – Dallas, in Dallas, Pennsylvania.
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