Man charged with two counts of capital murder following fatal SXSW crash

Local venue The Mohawk cancels tonight's show featuring Cloud Nothings and The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart

The man arrested following an incident in which two people were killed and a further 23 injured at the South By Southwest festival in Austin, Texas has been charged with two counts of capital murder.

Although currently unnamed, Austin police chief Art Acevedo revealed the man’s charges at a news conference held this morning at 9th & Red River, near to the site of last night’s incident (March 12). At the press conference it was confirmed that 15 of the 23 admitted to hospital following the crash have been released, reports The Oregonian. Eight people remain in hospital, two of whom are in a critical condition.

The names of the two deceased have yet to be revealed, but they have been confirmed as a local woman who was on a moped at that time and a male cyclist from the Netherlands. Acevedo did not release information on whether alcohol or drugs were involved in the suspect’s crash, but did say his blood is being tested.

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Austin Police are due to name the driver later today (Thursday), while The American Red Cross Central Texas will have a list of the names of the injured in last night’s crash too.

Local venue The Mohawk, nearest to where the incident occurred, has cancelled the event due to take place today with Cloud Nothings, Fucked Up, Speedy Ortiz and The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart all having been scheduled to play the Stereogum showcase.

Earlier today the organisers of South By Southwest issued a statement expressing sympathy for those affected and advising festival-goers to check the website and official Twitter feed for changes to the line-up. Police yesterday advised that Red River Street would be closed for most of the day.

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