17-year-old student dies in twin brother’s arms after being stabbed at school athletics event
A 17-year-old student tragically died in his identical twin brother's arms after being stabbed at a high school track meet in the US state of Texas.
Austin Metcalf was fatally stabbed on Wednesday (2 April) morning during what police in the city of Frisco described as an 'altercation between two students' at the David Kuykendall Stadium.
The Frisco Memorial High School pupil had been attending a championship track meet alongside his twin brother, Hunter, when the incident occurred.
Despite first responders desperately trying to revive him, Austin was later pronounced dead at a local hospital.
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Police have arrested Karmelo Anthony, 17, in connection with the stabbing, according to CNN. He has been charged with murder and is currently being held without bond.
Austin's family have now spoken out about the 'senseless' attack and how his devastated twin brother frantically 'tried to save him'.
The boys mother, Meghan Metcalf, described how she received a panicked phone call from Hunter 'screaming that Austin had been stabbed'.
"[Hunter] was there when he was stabbed and he was holding the wound - he was trying to save his brother," she told news outlet WFAA.
"I think he said he saw when he took his last breath before the CPR came back in. From what I heard, [Austin] was unresponsive for five minutes, they were able to revive him a little, but. It was too little, too late."
A heartbroken Hunter added: "He didn't deserve it. I know people that lose their family members all the time, but I just didn't know it would be mine so soon. My best friend, my brother, my whole life."
The argument which turned deadly is said to have begun after Anthony allegedly sat in the twins school's tent at the track meet and Austin asked him to move, according to the victim's family.
"I tried to whip around as fast as I could, but I didn't see the stab," Hunter continued. "I tried to help him. It was really senseless. I don't know why a person would do that to someone over that little argument."
He said that he and Austin had never encountered the 17-year-old Frisco Centennial High School student who was taken into custody before.
"Just because the kid was mad, my son is not here anymore, and I don't understand it," mum Meghan added, while saying her twins were 'the best of friends'.
She went on to describe Austin as the 'most amazing kid', saying: "So smart. He had college football guys looking at him to play in college. His goal was to play in college.
"He just had such ambitions and a drive that it's hard to find in a kid. Such a good spirit and so many kids love him."
Hunter said of his relationship with Austin, who was born just four minutes earlier than him: "We did everything together. You name anything in the world, it's always us too. We were always basically one person."
The twins father, Jeff Metcalf, also shared his heartbreak over Austin's death.
He told NBC News: "They were twins, identical twins, and his brother was holding on to him, trying to make it stop bleeding, and he died in his brother’s arms.
"I rushed up there and I saw him on the gurney and I could tell - they said he wasn’t breathing. I could see all the blood, and I saw where the wound was, and I was very concerned, so I had to find his brother, and we rushed to the hospital. And we prayed, and it’s God’s plan, I don’t understand it, but they weren’t able to save him. This is murder."
Police said in a statement: "The Frisco Police Department grieves with all those affected by this devastating loss and extends its deepest condolences to the victim’s family, students, and staff who are experiencing unimaginable pain.
"The department is collaborating with the Frisco Independent School District and will continue to provide any support they need during this incredibly difficult time."
Dad Jeff has launched a GoFundMe in 'honour' of Austin, where he described his son as a 'bright young man with a great future ahead of him'.
He wrote: "I love you forever, son. It's not goodbye, it's see you later. God will take care of us till we meet again. RIP. Love, Dad."
Olivia Burke