Students and taxi drivers marched in Oaxaca today to protest the release on bail of a young motorist believed responsible for an incident Friday that killed one man and left his girlfriend in a coma.

Alejandro Arturo Vargas Alavés was released on bail of 831,000 pesos (US $54,000) after the vehicle he was driving collided with a taxi about 1:30am Friday, killing medical student Yehú Robles Castellanos and putting Robles’ girlfriend, Daniela Celaya Rivera, also a medical student, in a coma. Both were passengers in the taxi, whose driver also sustained injuries.

Vargas Alavés, 19, has been accused of drag-racing on city streets while being under the influence of alcohol. Today’s protest march follows a rash of indignation on social media networks, prompted by a suspicion that transit officials have acted in favor of the driver, son of a prominent architect in the city.

The collision took place near the Faculty of Medicine of the Benito Juárez Autonomous University of Oaxaca (UABJO), where Robles and Celaya were fifth-year students who expected to graduate in June.

Vargas Alavés, whose father is president of the Oaxaca College of Architects, plays for the Alebrijes, a professional soccer club in Oaxaca.

In response to the accident, security officials in the city have announced they will beef up patrols to prevent drag-racing and implement more breathalyzer testing.

Sources: Tiempo en Línea (sp), Milenio (sp)