Slidell Police arrested 45-year-old Robert King of Slidell for intentionally parking his vehicle on the railroad tracks during the Krewe of Titans Mardi Gras parade.
While the parade was passing the intersection of Gause Blvd. and Front St., for reasons still under investigation, King parked his GMC Sierra pickup truck on the railroad tracks.
King left his vehicle, walked into the parade crowd and began making comments that created a disturbance, causing multiple people to alert Slidell Police officers. In the meantime, no one realized or reported that King’s truck was parked on the railroad tracks. Due to the disturbance that King was causing in the crowd, officers began searching for him. King was located several blocks away and was detained by officers due to his irrational behavior.
Shortly thereafter, multiple reports inundated the 911 center as King’s truck was stuck by a southbound freight train. It wasn’t until after the fact that officers realized the two incidents were related. King was booked into the Slidell City Jail for one count of Aggravated Obstruction of a Highway and Disturbing the Peace.
More charges are expected, as the investigation continues. No one was injured during the train crash.
