A man who was hit and killed by a train in California before his leg was eaten by a homeless man has been identified.
Horacio Ayala Peñaloza, 48, died after being struck by an Amtrak train in Wasco in March of this year, which killed him instantly and severed his leg.
According to a coroner’s report obtained by KBAK Peñaloza died of multiple head injuries, with his death ruled an accident.
After the incident, stunned onlookers captured 27-year-old Rosendo Tellez, picked up his severed leg, sniffed and waved it and reportedly started eating it.
Last month, Tellez pleaded no contest to four charges, including disposal of human remains, and was sentenced to a year in prison.
Horacio Ayala-Peñaloza, 48, died after being struck by an Amtrak train that killed him instantly and severed his leg in Wasco
After the incident, stunned onlookers captured Rosendo Tellez, 27, as they picked up his severed leg, sniffed and waved it and reportedly started eating it.
Tellez was arrested on charges of removing body parts from an area that is not a cemetery
Tellez was originally arrested on charges of removing body parts from an area that is not a cemetery. He was also charged with introducing contraband into a prison.
Witness footage shows Tellez walking away from the area while holding Ayala-Peñaloza’s leg from the crash.
He then leaned over and smelled the leg, wiped his mouth and turned it around as officers approached the sickening episode.
A work crew laying concrete near the station saw the incident, while employee Jose Ibarra reported it WPDE of alleged cannibalism.
Ibarra told the outlet, “I’m not sure where from, but he was walking this way and he was swinging someone’s leg.
“And he started chewing on it right there, biting it and hitting it on the wall and stuff.”
a GoFundMe was founded to help the Peñaloza family cover funeral costs and has raised just over $1,000.
Shocked onlookers watched as the man bent over and sniffed the leg before waving it through the streets of Wasco, California.
Tellez was arrested by police without resistance. Authorities discovered he had outstanding warrants for his arrest.
Burlington Northern Santa Fe, the railroad company involved, confirmed that one of their trains was involved in the collision.
According to their preliminary findings, Peñaloza was standing on the platform when he was hit by the train.