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FORT WORTH, Texas – Fort Worth police have filed manslaughter charges against the driver of a car following a deadly crash with a TRE train. A 5-year-old child died in that crash.

Fort Worth Car Hit by Train

What’s new:

A spokesman for the Fort Worth Police Department said 24-year-old Fabian Riojas is now charged with manslaughter for Wednesday afternoon’s crash that killed his 5-year-old passenger.

“The barricades were down on the train, around the train tracks. With that being said, to everyone’s knowledge, to the witnesses, the train was coming. This person decided he wanted to go past the barricade. In the midst of going past the barricades, the TRE struck the [car.] And then with there being a small child in the back, this was something that was preventable,” said Tracy Carter, with Fort Worth PD. “If the young gentleman just would have just taken his time and just waited for the train to clear, which wouldn’t have been very long. It’s just a sad day.”

Police confirmed that Riojas is related to the child but did not specify how. 

Riojas suffered only minor injuries. His mugshot has not yet been released.

What they’re saying:

Carter said this case was difficult for the officers who responded to the scene.

“One of the things I also want to put out there is we pray for the officers that responded to this because we’re all mothers. We’re dads. You know, we’re brothers. We’re sisters. And this is just something. You don’t want to see a 5-year-old perish the way this kid perished, right? And so again, we’re praying for everyone, all that were involved,” he said.

He begged people to always stop for barricades that are down, even if there’s no train in sight.

“Please, please, you don’t go through. Let the train proceed, even if you don’t see the train. They’re down for a reason. And even if they’re malfunctioning, you lose 10 or 15 minutes to save your life or someone else’s life. I think that matters more,” he said.

The Source: The information in this story comes from the Fort Worth Police Department and an interview with spokesman Tracy Carter.

Fort WorthCrime and Public Safety