VADO, N.M. – A New Mexico man is facing federal charges for allegedly derailing a freight train.
Federal prosecutors said Luis Angel Rodriguez made an initial court appearance Friday. The 27-year-old La Mesa man will remain in custody pending a preliminary hearing. It was not immediately clear if he had an attorney.
According to a criminal complaint, Rodriguez allegedly placed railroad ties on the track near Vado in the early morning hours of Dec. 2. That caused two Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway locomotives and 12 empty rail cars to derail, resulting in millions of dollars in damage and injuries to the conductor and engineer.
Doña Ana County Sheriff Kim Stewart told the Las Cruces Sun-News earlier this month that Rodriguez was arrested hours after the derailment but her agency had only enough evidence to charge him with property damage. It wasn’t until he was arrested a month later in a separate case that authorities found more evidence.
“He was in a stolen vehicle with a truckload full of stolen equipment,” Stewart said. “We got him booked in the early morning. We served a search warrant. There were railroad ties found at the location that he got served and some equipment to move the ties.”
Stewart said her agency lobbied for judges to rule Rodriguez a danger to society and hold him without bond after both arrests because of his suspected involvement in the trail derailment.
