A Hainesville man is scheduled to go on trial for murder Tuesday in Lake County court for allegedly beating another man unconscious last July and then placing his body on nearby railroad tracks, where he was run over and killed by a Metra commuter train.
Gary Matney, 34, of 94 Fairlawn Drive, is scheduled to go on trial before Lake County Judge Charles Scott on charges that he killed 47-year-old Ronald Pecore last summer, according to Assistant State’s Atty. Michael Wexler.
Pecore’s mangled body was found lying beside tracks near a maintenance yard just east of Illinois Highway 132, officials said. He was believed to have been a transient and had a Waukegan post office box address, officials said.
Hainesville police initially questioned acquaintances of Pecore, thinking the incident may have been a suicide. But soon investigators discovered that Matney and Pecore had had an argument shortly before the slaying.
Matney reportedly admitted to police that he had argued with Pecore near the tracks, and subsequently knocked him unconscious with his bare hands, authorities said.
He also allegedly admitted to dragging Pecore’s body to the tracks, where it was run over, according to authorities.