Homeless man killed by train in Arlington Hts.

Joseph Mukarat had no home but lots of friends near the train tracks in Arlington Heights.

"People called him 'Jesus Joe,'" said Ken Franklin, a friend of Mukarat's. "He could quote scripture from the Bible."

Mukarat, 47, died when he stumbled in front of a train about 6 p.m. Thursday near the downtown Arlington Heights train station at 45 W. Northwest Highway.

The train was traveling about 50 mph when it struck Mukarat, said Nicholas Pecora of the Arlington Heights Police Department.

"He crossed the tracks when the gates were down and the bells were going off," Pecora said.

Police weren't able to track down a relative of the man until Friday afternoon, Pecora said.

In total, 11 rush hour Metra trains were delayed between five minutes and two hours because of the accident, according to Patrick Waldron, a Metra spokesman.

Another of Mukarat's friends, Tom Fatigati, witnessed the accident. According to Fatigati, Mukarat was walking toward him, when the train hit him. The two had known each other for about five years.

"He was our friend," Fatigati said.