Sound Of Oncoming Train Drowned Out Other Train Barreling Toward Police Officers' Backs
CHICAGO (CBS)— The two officers fatally struck by a South Shore train Monday night while pursuing an armed suspect never saw the southbound train coming that struck them from behind, according to Chicago police spokesperson Tom Ahern.
The officers who were killed, 31-year-old Conrad Gary and Eduardo Marmolejo, 36, were walking along train tracks carrying a South Shore southbound electric line train sometime around 6:20 p.m.
The suspect they were pursing is in his 20s and appears to have no criminal record. and found the gun and was testing to see if it worked, sources tell CBS 2.
Gary and Marmolejo were facing a northbound train heading in their direction on neighboring train tracks as the southbound train was barreling toward their backs at an estimated speed of 60-70 mph, Ahern said.
[Read more: Officers Mourn Two CPD Officers, Eduardo Marmolejo And Conrad Gary, Killed By Train Monday Night]
A long, somber procession started before daybreak Tuesday morning, as hundreds of police vehicles escorted the bodies of two Chicago police officers killed Monday night by a speeding train as they pursued an armed suspect.
The engineer spotted them standing on the tracks and tried to slam on the brakes, but it was too late.
Ahern said the northbound train probably drowned out the sound of the southbound train, and the officers never knew it was coming.
Gary and Marmolejo had not yet spotted the suspect they were called to pursue, according to Ahern.
Both Metra and South Shore trains run on electric power, which are quieter than a diesel locomotive. There are also several sets of track in that area, which is poorly illuminated.
Hundreds of police vehicles escorted the officers' bodies from where they were killed near 103rd and Cottage Grove to the Cook County Medical Examiner's office Tuesday morning.
Police on Monday night caught the suspected gunman and recovered a weapon and shell casings.
Read More:
Officers Mourn Two CPD Officers, Eduardo Marmolejo And Conrad Gary, Killed By Train Monday Night
A long, somber procession started before daybreak Tuesday morning, as hundreds of police vehicles escorted the bodies of two Chicago police officers killed Monday night by a speeding train as they pursued an armed suspect.
Two Police Officers Hit And Killed By Train On The South Side
Two police officers have been struck by a South Shore train, Chicago police confirm. Both officers have died, the Fraternal Order of Police says.
