The SUV rammed a group of people waiting for a bus on the side of the road near a U.S. refugee, immigrant and homeless shelter.
At least seven people were killed and 10 injured when a car rammed a group of people waiting for a bus near a refugee, immigrant and homeless shelter, Texas police said.
The incident reportedly took place in the frontier town of Brownsville on Sunday when the group was waiting for a silver-gray SUV to run a red light and pull onto the side of the road.
Victor Maldonado, director of the Ozanam Center, said he reviewed surveillance video from the shelter after receiving a call about the crash.
“What we see in the video is this Range Rover SUV just ran about 100 feet into the light [30 metres] Get out and go through the people who are sitting at the bus stop,” Maldonado said.
Police arrested the driver, and investigators said it was unclear whether the behavior was deliberate. The man has been charged with reckless driving and could face additional charges, police said.
“It could be three factors,” Brownsville police investigator Martin Sandoval said. “It could have been drunk; it could have been an accident; or it could have been intentional. To figure out what happened, we have to rule out the other two first.”
Maldonado said the bus stop was across the street from the shelter and there were no benches, so some people sat on the side of the road.
The SUV rolled over after hitting the curb and continued on for about 60 meters (200 feet), he said. Some people walking on the sidewalk were also hit, he added.
Sandoval said the driver was taken to hospital with injuries sustained when the vehicle rolled over.
“He was very uncooperative in the hospital, but as soon as he was released he was sent to our city jail,” Sandoval said. “Then we’ll fingerprint him [take a] Mugshots before we can find out who he really is. “
Brownsville has long been a center of immigration to the U.S. and became a major point of interest ahead of the end of the pandemic-era border restrictions, known as Section 42, on May 11. It is located in the precarious city of Matamoros, one of the most important borders of Mexico.
The Ozanam Shelter is the only overnight shelter in Brownsville and manages the release of thousands of refugees and immigrants from federal custody.
Maldonado said the center received no threats before the crash, but they did afterward.
“I had a few people come to the door and tell the security that this happened because of us,” Maldonado said.
The shelter can accommodate up to 250 people, but many arrive and leave on the same day.
There has been an increase in border crossings over the past few weeks.
“We’ve had 250 to 380 people a day for the last two months,” Maldonado said.
