Robbery suspect takes hostage inside Oak Cliff Walgreens

DALLAS - The man accused of robbing a Dallas drugstore and holding people hostage could also face charges in a series of fast food robberies.

Police charged Jose Torres with robbing an Oak Cliff Walgreens and taking hostages on Sunday. Officers were on their way to an armed robbery call when they allegedly saw him driving in the area. They tried to pull him over and that’s when he jumped out and ran into the store.

A woman who did not want to use her name said the suspect took a 70-year-old woman hostage. He held her at gunpoint as other customers crawled to the exits to escape.

“I heard the cops say hit the floor. I left my purse on the counter, my keys on the counter and I hit the floor,” the witness said.

“I was in the store about five minutes when I heard a lot of commotion and a guy ran in and then the police ran in behind him,” said Siquana Upshaw, another witness.

As SWAT officers surrounded the building, police talked to the accused robber. He eventually walked out of the store without a weapon.

“I was just numb on the inside. I heard them talking to him in a calm manner. He was saying he had really messed up, that he was not going to hurt the lady. And they were trying to convince him to toss the gun to the side,” the witness said.

Torres eventually complied with police and let the woman go.

Police believe the same truck used in the Walgreens robbery was used in other robberies in Dallas over the weekend, including a robbery at Jack in the Box.

The truck had been stolen early Saturday morning. Ivan Lopez told FOX 4 that Torres carjacked him at gunpoint around 2 a.m. His parents happened to notice the truck at the Walgreens as they were driving by and called him to the scene.

"He said, ‘Give me the keys.’ And we're like, ‘What do you want the keys for?’ And that's when we saw the gun,” Lopez recalled. “I got off, I gave him the keys and I turned my back keeping my eyes on him to make sure he didn't try nothing. Then he got in the car and left.”

Court records reveal Torres had his probation revoked on Oct. 22 for violating the terms of a plea agreement for a child sex assault case. At this point, it's unclear what the violation was for.

Torres is being held in the Dallas County Jail on an aggravated kidnapping charge. Police say more charges could be pending.