By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
Val Verde Sheriff’s Office investigators are still working to identify a man believed to have been killed when he was struck by a train south of Del Rio early Tuesday.
Lt. Gina Garcia, who heads the sheriff’s office criminal investigations division, told the 830 Times today the sheriff’s office patrol division was notified about the incident at 1:59 a.m. Tuesday.
“It was called in through 9-1-1 at our dispatch center. We were notified by Amtrak personnel that there had been a train-versus-pedestrian accident on the railroad tracks,” Garcia said.
Garcia said Amtrak personnel directed sheriff’s deputies to an area of the railroad tracks near the railroad overpass over Cienegas Road in south Val Verde County. The area is located just south of the duck pond on Cienegas Road.
Garcia said patrol deputies located the deceased individual, believed to be male, then called investigators.
She said the man’s identity is unknown, and he is not believed to have been a victim of foul play.
The man was pronounced dead at the scene by a local justice of the peace and his body transferred to the Webb County Medical Examiner’s Office in Laredo for an autopsy. The medical examiner will make a formal determination as to the cause and manner of death.
Garcia said it is also not currently known if the dead man was a migrant who had entered the country illegally or a U.S. citizen.
“We may be able to get some type of identification through fingerprints or other processes done by the medical examiner,” Garcia said.
She added Amtrak personnel present on the train when the collision with the man occurred have provided statements and noted the company is cooperating fully with the investigation.
“This is still an ongoing investigation as we continue to work in obtaining information,” Garcia said.
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