LOS ANGELES – A train engineer at the Port of Los Angeles was arrested April 1, on federal charges for allegedly running a locomotive at full speed off the end of rail tracks near the USNS Mercy.
Eduardo Moreno, 44, of San Pedro, was charged April 1, in a criminal complaint with one count of train wrecking as a result of an incident Tuesday afternoon.
In a criminal complaint filed in United States District Court, Moreno admitted in two separate interviews with law enforcement authorities that he intentionally derailed and crashed the train near the Mercy.
Moreno ran the train off the end of tracks, and crashed through a series of barriers before coming to rest more than 250 yards from the Mercy. No one was injured in the incident, and the Mercy was not harmed or damaged in any way. The incident did result in the train leaking a substantial amount of fuel oil, which required clean up by fire and other hazardous materials personnel.
The train crash was witnessed by a California Highway Patrol officer, who took Moreno into custody as he fled the scene. The Los Angeles Port Police then took custody of Moreno, conducted an interview and obtained permission to search his residence. The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force and the Port of Los Angeles Police are now leading the investigation.
In his first interview with the Los Angeles Port Police, Moreno acknowledged that he “did it,” saying that he was suspicious of the Mercy and believing it had an alternate purpose related to COVID-19 or a government takeover, the affidavit states.
Moreno was held overnight on local charges, and he was turned over to FBI agents. Moreno is expected to make an initial appearance in federal court April 2.