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Security for Sturgis Motorcycle Rally elevated after Twin Peaks shooting

Posted at 3:14 PM, May 20, 2015
and last updated 2015-05-20 16:18:01-04

By The Associated Press

A motorcycle gang shootout in Texas that left nine people dead has elevated security concerns for the upcoming Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota.

The annual rally draws hundreds of thousands of motorcycle enthusiasts to South Dakota's Black Hills. Organizers are expecting up to 1 million people for the 75th anniversary event in early August.

South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley told the Argus Leader newspaper (http://argusne.ws/1AliGQ2 ) that his office has contacted authorities in Texas about the shootout in Waco on Sunday that involved rival motorcycle gangs.

Jackley said the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation plans to keep a command center open longer during the rally.

Sturgis City Manager Daniel Ainslie says officials will be "vigilant to ensure the safety" of rally-goers. But he says rally organizers aren't planning additional security beyond what the city already had planned.

10:25 a.m. (CDT)

One of the men arrested in the aftermath of a motorcycle gang shootout in Central Texas that left nine dead is a retired San Antonio police detective.

San Antonio police and the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement confirmed that 62-year-old Martin Lewis worked for the department for more than 30 years before retiring in 2004. Lewis was among about 170 people arrested in Waco and charged with engaging in organized crime. Each person is being held on a $1 million bond.

Online records for the McLennan County jail do not indicate an attorney for Lewis who could comment on the charge.

A confederation of motorcycle groups had gathered at a Twin Peaks restaurant Sunday when a dispute in the parking lot escalated into deadly violence.

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