Homeless vet in wheelchair was struck by truck while in crosswalk, but no word from EPPD on charges
A homeless and disabled veteran who was struck and killed by a semi-truck last week in El Paso’s Lower Valley was crossing the street in a crosswalk when he was hit, investigators said Monday, but there was no word on whether the truck driver would face any charges.
El Paso police identified the trucker as 36-year-old Jose Arturo Ramos Acosta of Ciudad Juarez and said their investigation into the deadly traffic accident was ongoing.
“The investigation revealed the tractor-trailer was stopped at the red light on the west bound lanes of North Loop at the Americas intersection,” said Sgt. Enrique Carrillo. “The driver of the tractor-trailer proceeded to make a right turn onto Americas and struck the pedestrian who was crossing at the cross walk.”
As ABC-7 reported Friday, the pedestrian struck and killed was 61-year-old Sydney Caldwell, a disabled veteran in a wheelchair who had been homeless for roughly two decades. He lived out of his van, which was parked at a nearby mechanic shop.
Business owners in the neighborhood said Caldwell could be seen regularly at that intersection, where he often solicited money. He was well-known in the neighborhood and those who knew Caldwell spoke fondly of him.
