The first known European to sail through the strait was Luis VÃ ez de Torres , a Spanish or Portuguese sailor . He was second-in-command of the Spanish expedition led by the Portuguese Pedro Fernandez de QuirÃ s who sailed from Peru to the South Pacific in 1605 . The first recorded European navigation of the strait was by Luis VÃ ez de Torres , a Spanish pilot who was second-in-command on the Spanish expedition led by Pedro Fernandez de QuirÃ s who sailed from Peru to the South Pacific in 1605 .