Investigators looks for possible motive in deadly Texas car ramming

We have new developments this morning in that deadly crash along the Texas border that killed eight people. The driver of that vehicle, George Alvarez, is now facing manslaughter charges. But police are still looking into a possible motive. Now, cities along the border are bracing for a new wave of migrants when a COVID-era immigration policy expires later this week. NBC News Home and Security correspondent Julia Ainsley joins us with the latest. Good morning, Julia. So first of all, where do things stand in the investigation into the driver and a possible motive? Well, Joe, it's really complicated.

We actually don't have as many answers at this point as we thought we might. But yes, they know that they've identified the driver as George Alvarez. But investigators told us yesterday that he's not cooperating. They actually haven't been able to talk to him as much as they would like to. He has a very long history, a very long criminal history, including assault with a deadly weapon, threatening elders, people in his family. This is someone who definitely has a track record here, but so far not cooperating. Also, so far, the charges manslaughter, but they haven't ruled out other charges that could come when they find out the motive.

Because of that context here, Title 42 lifting a surge of migrants down in Brownsville. I was just there on Friday when 2,300 migrants crossed just that morning. Because of that surge, a lot of people thought maybe this might be anti-immigrant motivated. But right now, we just don't have those answers. They're charging him with manslaughter after he ran a large SUV into that group of migrants standing at a bus stop. One of the reasons this investigation is complicated, authorities say, is because some of the victims were migrants, what more can you tell us about that aspect of the investigation? Yeah, beyond just the fact that George Alvarez is cooperating, a lot of the witnesses may have, some of them have had some anecdotes, some things that they've said about the scene that haven't been corroborated by police. That's also been confusing just from a reporting perspective.

And they also say that sometimes it's hard to talk to these victims because and the people who were there and witnesses because you also have to work with their government. Many of them Venezuelan. That's a tough task. Here's what they had to say about that yesterday. It has been a very tiresome process, but one that we are deeply committed to doing and accomplishing. We are working with the Venezuelan government right now, and we have also reached out to other illnesses. And of course, it's very difficult for the US government often or people in the United States to work with the Venezuelan government.

They're not notoriously cooperative with Americans, but they are going to continue this process as they try to piece together what exactly happened. And especially what George Alvarez may have said at the time of the scene and what his demeanor may have been like. If he had any anti-immigrant rhetoric as he approached this bus stop or after, they would want to know that. And of course, Julia, this all comes with Title 42 set to expire in two days on Thursday. Remind us again what that policy is and the strain that all this is really putting on border communities like Brownsville. That's right. So Title 42 is a COVID-19 restrictions that have turned migrants away more than 2.

5 million times before they could claim asylum when they cross the southern border. Because that national COVID emergency is lifting, that means at 11.59 p.m. on May 11, so really looking at May 12, more migrants will be able to cross and be able to claim asylum. However, some policies have changed that Biden administration has put new restrictions in place to raise the bar on what exactly migrants will need to prove in order to come into the United States. But what I've learned from a lot of border agents when I was down there last week is that really what they're expecting is an increase in press, as they're going to be able to get a new border.

And what they're expecting is an increase in processing times as they determine who can stay and who can't. That could lead to backlogs at the border already in cities like El Paso, where I'm going just about to head down there later today. I'm told as many as 2,000 are sleeping on the street. Many of those unprocessed because they're able to cross before Border Patrol even interacts with them because Border Patrol is already stretched so thin. They're $3 billion in the hold. They need more funding from Congress for this. And right now it looks like those border communities are going to be the ones bearing the brunt of the surge.

All right. Safe travels today, Julia. Thank you as always for your reporting.

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