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At least seven people were killed and several injured Sunday, when a man rammed his car into a group of people near an immigrant assistance center in Brownsville, Texas. Law enforcement said it was now treating the incident as unintentional, although a witness told AFP the driver shouted insults at the group before driving at them at breakneck speed.
At least 7 people were killed Sunday when a car plowed into a group of people waiting at a bus stop near a migrant assistance center in South Texasaccording to US police.
Law enforcement said it was now treating the incident as unintentional, although a witness told AFP the driver shouted insults at the group before driving at them at breakneck speed.
Martin Sandoval, a spokesman for the local police, told Agence France-Presse that a gray SUV “ran a red light and ran over several people” at around 8:30 am (1330 GMT) in Brownsville, a border city in the far south of Texas. .
He said that 7 people were killed and “nearly 10” others were wounded.
Witness Luis Herrera, who was injured in the arm, told the news agency that the run-over was “surprising.”
The 36-year-old Venezuelan added, “It was a matter of moments. The killer came in his car, gestured at us, and insulted us,” indicating that he drove his car at full speed.
People at the scene detained the driver, who Sandoval said was also taken to hospital, and has now been charged with reckless driving by police.
“It is likely that there will be other charges at a later time,” Sandoval said earlier to a local channel affiliated with the “ABC” network, stressing that the police have opened an investigation to find out whether the fatal accident was accidental or intentional.
Victor Maldonado, executive director of the Ozanam homeless shelter across the street, said the victims were among a crowd of about 25 people waiting at the bus stop.
He added that everyone was Venezuelan, and they had finished eating breakfast at the center, describing the scene as horrific, as body parts were scattered along the road.
Maldonado pointed out that the center is open 24 hours a day, and “we used to house people from Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, China, Ukraine (…) and many Venezuelans.”
Sandoval said at least some of the victims were immigrants, without confirming whether all of them were.
“It is something we are investigating with the border police,” he said.
The tragedy comes as US authorities prepare Thursday to lift a federal policy on immigrants imposed under Donald Trump that allows border guards to deport immigrants without even accepting their asylum applications.
The expiry of the measure known as “Article 42” has led to the authorities’ fear of an increase in the number of illegal immigrants entering the United States.
