A 30-year-old man whose body was found in a Metro Red Line tunnel between Universal City and North Hollywood was identified by county authorities Tuesday.
The Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner’s office identified the victim as Hector Requene Rodriguez.
Officers were called to the 5300 block of Lankershim Boulevard, south of Chandler Boulevard, at about 2:45 p.m. Saturday and requested an ambulance for a person on the tracks who was unconscious and not breathing, Los Angeles Police Department Officer Tony Im told City News Service.
Rodriguez was pronounced dead at the scene.
There was no indication that one of the electric-powered trains struck Rodriguez, but Im said, “He was in a place where he should not be.”
Police later said that uniformed officers assigned to a Transit Services Division overtime detail were at the North Hollywood station when they observed the subject evade paying a fare and walk onto the train platform.
“Officers followed the subject from a distance as he began to yell and exhibit erratic behavior,” police said in a statement. “Officers believed the subject was mentally ill when he walked toward the edge of the platform. Officers were concerned that the subject was about to jump on the tracks and attempted to stop him. Upon attempting to detain the subject, the officers were involved in a minor use of force. The subject actively resisted and fled, escaped their grasp, and fled onto the railway tracks and into the subway tunnel.
“He subsequently fled southbound through the B line tunnel toward the Universal City/Studio City subway platform. Officers broadcast a backup request and waited for additional resources. After a search of the tunnel, officers, while riding the subway train, located the subject underneath the third rail of the tracks.”
The LAPD’s Force Investigation Division responded to the scene and are investigating the death.
“Metro expresses its sympathy for the tragic death that occurred in a cross passage between the North Hollywood and University City stations on the B Line this afternoon,” Metro spokesman Jose Ubaldo said Saturday.
“Metro reminds the public to never walk on train tracks and to stand behind the yellow line on all rail station platforms,” Ubaldo said. “Please look and listen for trains in both directions and never run to catch the train.”