San Antonio police chief says authorities ready to shut down ‘street takeover’ events

San Antonio Police Chief William McManus took to Twitter to assure the public that SAPD is cracking down on people participating in “street takeovers” of the kind that paralyzed parts of Austin over the weekend.

On Saturday, four separate takeovers shut down thoroughfares in the state capital. In the case of one at the intersection of Barton Springs Road and South Lamar, it took police 22 minutes to arrive, according to Austin NBC affiliate KXAN.

“Last couple of weeks, street racer/takeover groups have showed up here in SA and ended in numerous arrests, citations, and gun and vehicle seizures,” McManus said in a Monday tweet. “This kind of activity is dangerous and disruptive. Check out what happened in Austin.”

Although Austin’s street takeover grabbed national headlines, San Antonio is no stranger to the anarchy created by groups of car enthusiasts eager who put together rogue events to unleash stunts like those featured in the Fast and Furious film franchise.

On Jan. 16, a group of drivers blocked the eastbound lanes of Interstate 10 near Callaghan Road and proceeded to rev their engines and do donuts in the middle of the freeway.

McManus told TV station KENS 5 during a violent crime reduction plan meeting on Monday that SAPD has assembled a team ready to respond to street takeovers at a moment’s notice.

Despite law enforcement efforts to push back at the trend, street takeovers are on the rise in some parts of the country — and they can have deadly consequences. In 2021, two people were killed in a street-takeover crash in Miami Gardens, Florida, including a mother of four who was decapitated.

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This article appears in Feb 8-21, 2023.