GLADSTONE, Mo. — Authorities say that an AT&T employee is dead after being found in a utility truck in a Northland yard early Wednesday morning.
According to Gladstone Police, a homeowner called authorities around 3:30 a.m. on Wednesday morning after seeing the truck parked in a yard in the 2700 block of 57th Terrace. Police say that a victim, Kevin Mashburn, 58, was found in the AT&T utility truck, the victim of an apparent assault.
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Mashburn later died at an area hospital. There is no word on the nature of his injuries.
“We didn’t understand why an AT&T truck would be parked in that particular area anyway,” said neighbor Jennifer McDowell, who says that her neighbors woke up to an ominous sound. “They woke up to the gentleman honking his horn. When they got around to get to the vehicle, he was unconscious by that time.”
Neighbors tell FOX 4 that AT&T trucks sometimes stage near the Kendallwood Apartments to wait for assignments.
Police say that officers had to break the driver’s side window to get the Mashburn out of the locked vehicle. On Wednesday afternoon, officers had taped off an area stretching nearly 100 yards from where the apparently random attack may have began to where the truck came to a stop.
Authorities say that the victim contacted his dispatch operator to report that he was being attacked, and the dispatch operator then contacted 911.
Neighbor Ruby McCant says that she never heard a thing last night.
“I had the window open last night, never heard a thing,” said McCant.
Sources tell FOX 4 News that Mashburn was a long-time employee of AT&T, having been with the company for nearly 40 years. On Wednesday morning, AT&T released the following statement:
“Today, we were saddened to learn of the death of one of our employees. The employee’s family and friends are in our thoughts and prayers. AT&T is fully cooperating with authorities in their investigation.”
