Police have identified the dead man found Thursday, Sept. 10, on railroad tracks in Manville.
The victim is said to be Manville resident Devin J. Burke, 22, of North 5th Avenue. Preliminary investigation has shown no foul play. Detectives are trying to determine if it was accidental or suicide.
Somerset County Prosecutor Geoffrey D. Soriano said in a press release that at about 6:15 a.m. a train conductor operating a westbound train reported to authorities that he saw what appeared to be a deceased human body on the train tracks.
At 6:20 a.m. responding Manville police officers located the body on the train tracks in the vicinity of 600 Washington Ave. The injuries were consistent with injuries sustained as a result of being struck by a train.
Detectives from the Manville Borough Police Department, the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit, the Crime Scene Investigations and Forensics Unit, officers from the Norfolk Southern Railroad Police Department, and the state Regional Medical Examiner’s Office responded and initiated a joint investigation.
Detectives, with the assistance of Norfolk Southern Police, will review potential video footage equipped on the trains to determine the circumstances surrounding the death.
According to his obituary printed online, Mr. Burke was born in Somerville to Joseph and Nancy Burke, and was a lifelong resident of Manville. He was a class of 2011 graduate from Manville High School and was employed for the Somerville Elks Lodge.
The obituary says in his spare time, Mr. Burke loved playing soccer, especially with his brother, fishing and “burning“ on the grill.
Funeral services were held Sept. 16 at Bridgewater Funeral Home, 707 E. Main St., Bridgewater. Memorial contributions can be made to Somerset County Animal Shelter, 100 Commons Way, Bridgewater, NJ, 08807.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is urged to contact the Somerset County Prosecutors Office Major Crimes Unit at 908-231-7100, Manville police at 908-725-1900, or the Somerset County Crime Stoppers’ Tip Line at 1-888-577-TIPS (8477) or online at www.888577tips.org or www.scpo.net and click on either “Crime Stoppers” or “TIPS HOTLINE”. All anonymous Crime Stopper tips will be kept confidential.
