Pair in court in connection with Oklahoma shootings

Two men have appeared in court on accusations they were behind a series of shootings in Oklahoma that left three people dead.

Alvin Watts and Jake England appeared via closed-circuit television from jail today. A judge set bond at $9.16m (€7m) apiece.

Police describe the suspects as white and the victims as black but cannot yet say if the attacks were racially motivated. They said they are also are looking at whether England was trying to avenge his father’s death.

Both are being held on suspicion of three counts of first-degree murder, two counts of shooting with the intent to kill and one count of possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony. They will be formally charged at a later date.

Neither man had a lawyer present today.