An 18-year-old man was arrested Tuesday and is accused of fatally shooting a teen over the weekend in North Austin, according to Austin police.
Austin police on Sunday afternoon were notified of a person who had been shot in the parking lot of a mobile home park located just north of the intersection of U.S. 183 and Lamar Boulevard, according to authorities.
Officers who responded to the call found Juan Carlos Cruz, and despite life saving measures made by Austin-Travis County medics, the teen was pronounced dead at the scene around 5:50 p.m. later that same day, police said.
Police said people who saw the shooting reported that Gregorio Vences-Benitez left the scene of the crime before officers arrived. On Tuesday, Vences-Benitez was arrested by the Lonestar Fugitive Task Force, and is facing a first-degree murder charge, police said, adding that his bail is $500,000.
Recovery efforts continue for swimmer reported missing over weekend in Lake Travis
Search crews are still looking for a swimmer who was reported missing Saturday near Devil s Cove, on the north shore of Lake Travis across from Hudson Bend, according to the Travis County sheriff s office.
Authorities said the man was swimming near a boat that was anchored in Devil s Cove, where the water is about 35 feet deep and murky because of silt, and he is thought to not have resurfaced. Rescue crews got a call about the missing swimmer around 3:10 p.m. on Saturday.
The sheriff s office has used sonar and drone technology, conducted shoreline and surface searches, and deployed a dive team in its search efforts.
Abbott said extreme fire danger in West Texas has been forecast through the weekend. In preparation for this severe weather, the State of Texas has placed a variety of emergency resources on standby, and we will continue to monitor weather conditions as this storm system travels across our state, Abbott said in a statement Friday.
National Weather Service Meteorologist Aaron Treadway told the American-Statesman that the same storm system that produced rain, hail and heavy winds in North, East and Central Texas on Friday also will cause dry, windy conditions in West Texas in its wake, leading to the fire danger.
The Austin Justice Coalition is holding a rally Thursday afternoon to call for continued activism against racial injustice and police violence following the guilty verdict in the Derek Chauvin murder trial
Chauvin was a Minneapolis police officer last year who, while arresting George Floyd, was caught on a bystander s video pressing his knee against Floyd s neck for more than 9 minutes as pleaded that he couldn t breathe.
Chauvin was convicted Tuesday of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
The rally in Austin, scheduled for 5 p.m. Thursday at Huston-Tillotson University in East Austin, will include a vigil in honor of Floyd, as well as for Adam Toledo, Daunte Wright, Breonna Taylor and other people of color around the country who have been killed by law enforcement officers, organizers said.