11 dead in hopper car

Johnny Trains Oct 16, 2002

  1. Johnny Trains

    Johnny Trains Passed away April 29, 2004 In Memoriam

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    11 Found Dead in a Rail Car in Rural Iowa

    October 15, 2002
    By TINA KELLEY

    Up to 11 badly decomposed bodies were discovered yesterday
    afternoon in a grain hopper car in Denison, Iowa, the
    authorities said. They appeared to be Mexican immigrants,
    the Mexican consul in Omaha said.

    A spokesman for the Union Pacific railroad, John Bromley,
    said the grain hopper car was parked at the F.S.C. Archer
    Daniels Midland elevator in Denison, where it was to be
    loaded with grain. Employees planning to clean the car
    opened it and discovered the bodies.

    José Cuevas, the Mexican consul in Omaha, said he was told
    that there were 11 people inside, though he did not know
    their sex or ages or whether they had identification or
    personal belongings with them.

    "We're assuming they're Mexican nationals," he said,
    because of the route the car took.

    "We know that the train came through the port of entry of
    Matamoros, Mexico, in June," he said. "We know that the
    train was parked in a railyard in Oklahoma for close to
    four months, and then was just recently moved to Denison."

    Jerry Heinauer, the district director of the Immigration
    and Naturalization Service for Nebraska and Iowa, said the
    train arrived in Denison on Sunday. "The car was closed but
    not sealed," he said. "You can't get out of it from inside,
    but someone else can open a hatch easily and let you out."

    He said it was not unusual for a smuggling operation to
    use grain hoppers, perhaps because it was difficult for the
    authorities to find people inside.

    "If it appears as though it was a smuggling event, we'll do
    our best to identify and prosecute those individuals
    responsible and do whatever we can to prevent this kind of
    tragedy from happening again," Mr. Heinauer said.

    The bodies were taken to Des Moines so the state officials
    could determine the cause of death, the authorities said.

    The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, Union Pacific
    and the Crawford County Sheriff's Department are also
    involved in the investigation.

    Gary Merrill, a dispatcher with the sheriff's office, said
    no railroad employees were being considered as suspects in
    the case.

    http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/15/national/15IOWA.html?ex=1035702719&ei=1&en=c15389dc349e990c
     
  2. Hytec

    Hytec TrainBoard Member

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    I heard this on various news channels .... Y U K K K ! :mad: [​IMG]
     

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