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In Brownsville, Texas, the driver of an SUV that was involved in an incident that resulted in the deaths of eight people has been charged with manslaughter, according to police statements made on Monday. Investigators are still working to ascertain whether or not the crash was deliberate.
After blowing a red light early on Sunday morning, authorities think that a motorist from Brownsville named George Alvarez, 34, lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a group of Venezuelans who were standing outside of a migrant facility.
According to the Chief of Police, Felix Sauceda, eight counts of manslaughter and ten counts of aggravated assault with a dangerous weapon have been filed against Alvarez. Sauceda stated that the authorities are awaiting the results of toxicology tests to establish if Alvarez was under the influence of alcohol or drugs. He added that there was no motive that he could explain.
According to what Sauceda stated during a press conference held first thing on Monday morning, the SUV ran a red light, lost control, flipped on its side, and struck 18 people. According to what he claimed, there were six fatalities and 12 persons who had significant injuries at the scene. According to official reports, the number of fatalities eventually reached eight.
According to one witness, Alvarez made an attempt to escape the scene but was stopped by a group of bystanders. The judge decided to set him bail at $3.6 million.
According to Sister Norma Pimentel, the executive director of Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, the victims hit by the car were waiting for the bus to return to downtown Brownsville after spending the night at the overnight shelter. The bus was scheduled to return at 6:00 p.m.
According to the director of the shelter, Victor Maldonado, the majority of the casualties were males from Venezuela. Authorities said that during the past two weeks, Brownsville has been hit by a large influx of Venezuelan migrants for reasons that are yet unknown. On Thursday, around 4,000 Venezuelans were among the approximately 6,000 migrants who were in the custody of the Border Patrol in Texas’ Rio Grande Valley.
The blood sample was taken by the police and then delivered to a laboratory operated by the Texas Department of Public Safety for analysis.
The driver involved in the Brownsville incident resulting in the deaths of eight people has been charged with manslaughter and aggravated assault with a dangerous weapon. The investigation is ongoing to determine if the crash was deliberate and if the driver was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. The victims were waiting for a bus to return to downtown Brownsville after spending the night at an overnight shelter, and most were males from Venezuela. The incident is a tragedy, and our thoughts are with the families and loved ones of those affected by this devastating event.
