Crash investigation
A man suspected of abandoning his pickup on the railroad tracks in the 1600 block of West Murphy Street has become entangled with an unlikely law-enforcement agency.
Odessa police said Saturday a 59-year-old Odessa man was driving a 1982 GMC pickup west on the railroad tracks picking up pieces of metal when his truck got stuck.
Odessa police arrested the man, but the case was given over to the Union Pacific police because the incident happened on their property.
Raquel Espinoza, media director for Union Pacific’s Southern region, said Steven Williams has been charged with felony theft in connection with ties and spikes that were taken, and interference with railroad property.
“He clearly put the lives of our crew in jeopardy,” Espinoza said, but luckily no one was hurt on the Dallas-bound locomotive from Long Beach, Calif.
Espinoza said the railroad was still assessing damages to the locomotive itself as well delays.
“There is a single main line in the area and we had to stop for some time,” Espinoza said.
Espinoza explained that Union Pacific police are deputized peace officers.
“They oversee safety issues and security of volume at Union Pacific properties,” Espinoza said.
The Odessa Police Department and Union Pacific Railroad said that property belonging to the railway and crossings are very dangerous areas and people should remain alert at all times while in these areas. State law prohibits being on railway right of way at any time except at approved crossings.
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