SAN ANTONIO – Bexar County sheriff’s investigators believe a man who was run over by an 18 wheeler and killed late Monday night fell from the truck while secretly hitching a ride on it.
Deputies found the 47-year-old man dead from his injuries, when they arrived at the scene after 10 p.m.
Related: Man killed after falling from 18-wheeler, BCSO says
According to a report released Tuesday morning, the driver of the big rig was heading north on Interstate 35 near Benton City Road when he noticed a car in front of him that had slowed to a stop.
The report says the driver tried to move forward but noticed something was wrong with his trailer.
When he got out to inspect it, he found a man beneath the wheels of his truck, the report says.
The man died from his injuries.
Investigators say it appears that he and a second man had been hiding on top of the 18-wheeler without the driver’s knowledge.
They believe the man who was killed slipped and fell, then was run over by the truck.
The report says deputies believe both men were migrants.
After the accident, they say the other man who was on top of the truck climbed into another car and left the area.
The truck driver remained at the scene and spoke with deputies.
Although the crash scene had cleared up by morning, the crash, itself, remained on some people’s minds.
Debra Dixon, another driver who had stopped at a nearby truck stop, said the incident doesn’t exactly come as a surprise.
“Unfortunately, it does happen, and I feel sorry for the gentleman that passed away,” she said.
Dixon, who was not involved in the deadly crash in any way, said she has heard horror stories from fellow truckers when it comes to unexpected passengers.
“Sometimes they jump up on our catwalk as we’re passing by, like if we come to a stop,” she said. “They’ll hold onto our little mirror up there to catch a ride.”
She says one of the first things she learned when she became a truck driver more than 15 years ago was to be alert and aware.
Sheriff’s deputies investigating Monday night’s deadly crash were not sure right away how or when the two men climbed on top of that big rig.
However, their report stated that they suspect both were migrants.