Austin, Texas police charge 17 more in ‘street hijacking’

Austin, Texas — austin police department (APD) with Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) and Travis County District Attorney’s Officeannounced that 17 new suspects were indicted in connection with the so-called “street takeover” in Austin in February.

At a press conference Thursday afternoon, Austin Police Chief Joseph Chacon said the investigation revealed more activity than he was aware of during APD’s Feb. 21 update on this ongoing investigation. said.

According to Chacon, a total of seven “road hijacking” events occurred between the night of February 18th and the morning of February 19th. This is a higher number than previously reported by APD. The takeover event started at 6pm on Friday and lasted until 2am on Saturday. They stretched as far south as 4800 blocks on US 290 West and as far north as Howard Lane on Heatherwilde Boulevard.

According to Chacon, the most widely reported incident on South Lamar Boulevard and Barton Springs Road was actually the third event of the night.

Chacon has since announced that 17 new suspects have been charged in connection with the case, in addition to and separately from previous arrests announced in February. The 17 suspects include two juveniles, who remain anonymous, and 15 adults who said Chacon has been identified and will be listed with specific charges.

Chacon said 11 of the 17 suspects are in custody, and law enforcement officials are working to detain the remaining six. Chacon said the oldest suspect is 32 and the youngest is 15.

Chacon said many of the suspects involved in the acquisition were from cities outside of Austin, including Houston, Dallas and San Antonio.

Currently, 17 suspects are indicted on 38 charges, including:

• 7 Highway Obstruction (State Prison Felony)
• 9 Public road closure due to tailgate driving (class A misdemeanor)
• 7 Involved in organized criminal activity (state prison felony)
• 7 Manslaughter (Class A Misdemeanor)
• 2 Reckless driving (class B misdemeanor)
• 2 In-vehicle evasion (third-degree felony)
• 1 count of illegal use of fireworks (second-degree felony)
• 1 count of motor vehicle malpractice (state prison felony)
• 1 count for illegal possession of a firearm (submitted by DPS)
• 1 firearm theft (submitted by DPS)

Chacon said that in addition to those criminal charges, some of the vehicles involved have been seized.

Later Thursday, police released the identities of the arrested suspects: Jerry Antonio Gore Jr., Corey Latavian-Hicks, Keegan Alec Lopez-Stiva, Dewan Tay Mavin, Kevonte McConnell Hawkins, Cory Jerome Murray Jr., Julian Arnes Patmon, Genesis Brenda Ramirez, Keshun Jamal Semer.

Police are looking for six of the suspects, five adults and a juvenile. The five adults are Jose Leonidas Carcamos, Cristian Hernandez, Edward Pittman Jr., Ryan Ray Lacour and Corey Austin Lamb.

“The events that occurred on the night of February 18 disrupted our community, attracted a lot of attention, and were clearly not good for public safety,” Chacon said at a news conference Thursday. All of the agencies that do “will proceed with this investigation swiftly and decisively to ensure that those who committed these acts are held accountable.”

Texas DPS Director Steve McCullough agreed with Chacon’s statement, thanked the agencies concerned, and said incidents of this nature are not unique to Austin.

“This is organized criminal activity that spans multiple jurisdictions. Clearly, it is a serious threat to the public. It will not be tolerated in Austin. It will not be tolerated anywhere in any particular state. Plain and simple.” McCraw said. “If you are involved in a street hijacking, we will definitely track you down. Get seized and track your driver’s license. Likewise for street racing. So obviously you’re not going to Texas.

Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza said his office will receive a criminal case involving 17 new suspects within the next week. said his office “is in a strong position to ensure that these individuals are held accountable.”

In addition to the APD and DPS, the following law enforcement agencies were also involved in the investigation, which authorities have dubbed “Operation Burnout”: Travis County Sheriff’s Office, New Braunfels Police Department, San Marcos Police Department. Department, San Antonio Police Department, Bexar County Sheriff’s Office, Hayes County Sheriff’s Office, Live Oak Police Department, Selma Police Department, Rolling Wood Police Department, Westlake Police Department, Houston Police Department, Harris County Sheriff’s Office , Dallas County Sheriff’s Office.

Chacon said the support of these organizations contributed significantly to the APD investigation.

“This investigation really, I think our community felt it very strongly when the incident happened.And we knew…this required a coordinated response.APD We didn’t do this on our own. , and the District Attorney a lot for the support lent to this,” Chacon said. He said.

If you see suspicious activity surrounding a possible “street takeover” you will be asked to report it iWatchTexasYou can submit your information on the iWatchTexas website, app, or by calling 844-643-2251. According to DPS, this should only be used in non-emergency situations.

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