Jul 18, 2008 8:24 am US/Pacific
Police I.D. Body In Metrolink Murder Investigation
SAN BERNARDINO
Authorities have identified the man whose body was discovered late Thursday on train tracks in Grand Terrace, launching a homicide investigation that prompted Metrolink to cancel at least two Friday morning rush hour commuter trains.
David Leal Martinez, 44, of Riverside, was discovered late Thursday lying on Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad tracks near the Main Street crossing in Grand Terrace, according to San Bernardino County coroner's officials.
An autopsy will be conducted early next week to determine the cause of Martinez' death.
Martinez was already dead before his body was placed on the tracks and struck by a freight train near the San Bernardino-Riverside county line, sheriff's and Metrolink officials said.
The body was struck by a BNSF freight train around midnight Thursday on a stretch of track near Transit Avenue and Main Street in Grand Terrace, said Arden Wiltshire of the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department.
The investigation and track closures prompted Metrolink to cancel at least two trains Friday morning on its Inland Empire line, which runs from San Bernardino to the coast through Riverside and Orange counties, and put other trains behind schedule.
The cancellations threw many commuters' plans into disarray, on television station reported. Some Metrolink users told a KTLA reporter they would work from home or drive to their destinations instead.
Metrolink did not provide a back-up plan for the suddenly stranded commuters, according to KTLA.
Stops on the Inland Empire run include downtown and La Sierra Avenue in Riverside, North Main Corona, West Corona, Anaheim Canyon, Orange, Santa Ana, Tustin, Irvine, Laguna Niguel, San Juan Capistrano, San Clemente and Oceanside, according to Metrolink.
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