16-year-old charged with murder in Spring Valley beating death

SPRING VALLEY, New York (WABC) -- A 16-year-old boy has been charged with murder in the death of an 18-year-old man during a robbery in Spring Valley late last month.

The incident happened on Sunday, June 26, at approximately 11:55 p.m., when the Spring Valley Police Department responded to a report of a possible robbery on North Myrtle Avenue. Officers discovered an unconscious man -- later identified as Ruben Suchite Torres -- with apparent facial and head injuries.

Torres was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital and then transferred to Westchester Medical Center, where he was listed in grave condition in a coma before being taken off life support over the July 4th weekend.

Jiwan Coleman was arrested after the incident and charged with attempted murder and assault, and the charges were upgraded after Torres' death.

Police believe that Coleman used a rock to attack his victim, striking him in the head.

Torres, originally from Guatemala, had just completed his first year at Spring Valley High School and worked part-time in the kitchen of the Nanuet Hotel and Restaurant. He was walking home from work at the time he was attacked.

He lived with his father and sister, while his mother and other siblings live in Guatemala. His family told Eyewitness News that he wanted to go to America because his homeland was too dangerous.