SYDNEY, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- An 18-year-old driver accused of crashing into a crowd in Australia's Newcastle earlier this month, injuring 10 people, has been charged with eight additional offenses, police said on Tuesday.
The incident occurred on the morning of Oct. 3, when a car struck supporters gathered to farewell the Newcastle Knights rugby league team ahead of a championship match.
Ten people were taken to hospital, including a 5-year-old girl and a 67-year-old man who were initially in critical condition.
The alleged driver, Indika Bambrick Samarasinghe, was arrested at the scene and initially charged with nine offenses.
New South Wales Police said in a statement on Tuesday evening that the additional charges include six counts of causing bodily harm by misconduct while in charge of a motor vehicle, one count of negligent driving occasioning grievous bodily harm and one count of dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm.
The new charges bring the total to 17. Samarasinghe, who was granted bail last week, is due to appear in Newcastle Local Court on Thursday. ■