A man may have intentionally stepped into the path of an oncoming freight train near Cleveland in the early morning hours around 3:30 a.m. Thursday, April 22.
According to Capt. Ken DeFoor, a spokesperson for the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office, the 35 to 50-year-old white male was spotted by the Union Pacific train crew walking alongside the tracks near US 59 and CR 375. The crew blew the train horn in an attempt to get the man away from the tracks.
“As the train got near, the man apparently intentionally stepped onto the tracks, and before the train could stop, it struck the man,” said DeFoor, relating information obtained from the scene by the investigating deputy, Dep. Joel Davila.
The man has not yet been identified, according to DeFoor. He was wearing blue jeans and a yellow shirt.
“Although Union Pacific investigators are taking the lead on this investigation with the assistance of the Sheriff’s Office, Dep. Davilla is asking the public to call the Sheriff’s Office at 936-336-4500 if anyone knows this person and can perhaps provide investigators with a name and other vital information to determine why this may have been a deliberate death,” DeFoor said.
Pct. 6 Justice of the Peace Ralph Fuller conducted the inquest at the scene and ordered an autopsy.