A 17-year-old boy faces charges for tampering with a train rail, leading to a derailment, and subsequently filming the incident. The Omaha Public Power District and BNSF Railway are identified as the entities that suffered damages.
On April 21, a BNSF train derailed at the railroad crossing near Monroe and Juniper Streets at 6:10 p.m. The incident involved two locomotives and five fully loaded railcars derailing and colliding with an empty railcar, though all remained upright.
Court documents reveal that a 17-year-old train enthusiast was present at the scene, filming the derailment, and later shared the video with KOLN. According to an investigator with the BNSF Railway Police, the train’s conductor noted that a switch had been misaligned, redirecting the train from its eastbound route onto an industry track.
The conductor attempted an emergency stop but couldn’t halt the train before it reached the misaligned switch, causing the derailment and collision with an empty coal car. The investigator found that a padlock, meant to secure the switch, was missing.
During the investigation, the 17-year-old approached the scene, inquiring about the cause of the derailment. When informed that the cause was undetermined, he remarked, “Obviously a switch was flipped the wrong way,” and showed the video he had recorded. Although the teen denied trespassing and tampering with the switch, he demonstrated knowledge of its location and operation.
Surveillance footage reviewed by authorities showed a vehicle and a lone driver in the area just before the derailment. The 17-year-old was later identified in the footage, seen in a 1996 Buick Park Avenue, setting up a tripod near the crossing four minutes before the derailment.
In May, investigators matched the vehicle in the surveillance footage with the boy’s car. Based on the evidence, a search warrant was issued for potential video evidence from the boy’s phone and digital camera.
The teen was subsequently arrested and charged with two counts of criminal mischief exceeding $5,000, each classified as a class IV felony. The derailment caused approximately $350,000 in damages to the power district’s rail and BNSF’s engines and cars.
Lancaster County Attorney Pat Condon stated that a motion has been filed to move the case from juvenile court to county court, with the intention to try the teen as an adult.