Police: Aurora man tried to steer SUV off bridge

An Aurora man has been charged with attempted murder after police said he tried to cause a vehicle he was riding in to plunge off a bridge.

Joel Torres, 27, of the 200 block of North Fourth Street, was a front-seat passenger in a 2005 Chevy Blazer that was crossing Aurora’s High Street Bridge at 10:55 a.m. Saturday when he grabbed the steering wheel and turned it left, sending the Blazer into a guard rail, police spokesman Dan Ferrelli said.

Ferrelli said Torres and the female driver had been arguing before the crash. Ferrelli confirmed a 1-year-old child was in the vehicle’s back seat.

The Blazer hit the guardrail, which prevented the van from going over the side, Ferrelli said.

The female driver and child were not injured, Ferrelli said, but the vehicle sustained $1,500 in damage.

Torres was charged with attempted murder and damaging state-supported property, Ferrelli said. He was transferred to Kane County jail after his arrest.