Questions remain about McKeesport man's 1986 death on tracks
A McKeesport man was hit and dismembered by a train more than 20 years ago, and detectives are still trying to determine whether someone left his body on the train tracks deliberately.
Rocco Tassone, 22, was found just after 3 a.m. July 24, 1986, said Allegheny County Police homicide Sgt. Andrew Schurman. A train passing through Liberty Borough stopped to uncouple the cars and saw blood on the tracks, Schurman said.
The conductor followed the trail of blood and found Tassone's body about 300 feet away.
Tassone was wearing only tennis shoes. An autopsy showed he suffered blunt-force trauma, including neck and spine fractures and amputation of his legs. Toxicology tests at the time showed Tassone had a blood-alcohol level nearly double the legal limit.
Tassone had attended a party earlier that night, and police questioned numerous people who were partying under a bridge near the railroad tracks. Police found two sets of shoe prints on the bridge near where Tassone's body was found, Schurman said.
Police also don't know whether four teenagers who were in an accident near the railroad tracks were involved with Tassone's death. The teens were in a pickup truck that crashed and overturned on River Road. When they were taken to a hospital, police found clothing inside the truck that didn't belong to any of the them.
Investigators weren't able to determine whether the clothes belonged to Tassone. Detectives don't know whether Tassone was so intoxicated that he wandered onto the tracks and fell unconscious or whether someone placed him there. His clothing was never found, but detectives discovered money he had hidden in his tennis shoe.
Additional Information:
Cold Case Files
Every Monday, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and local police publish details of unsolved homicides. Anyone with information on today's case can call Allegheny County Police communications dispatch at 412-473-3000 or county homicide Lt. Bill Palmer at 412-473-1253 or Sgt. Andrew Schurman at 412-473-1301. Callers can remain anonymous. People with information can also visit the county police headquarters at 400 N. Lexington Ave. in North Point Breeze.
