IMLAY CITY, Mich. – A man who was dead when officials pulled him out of a collapsed trench was killed by contact with excavation equipment and had died before being buried in the trench, according to authorities.
Police were called at 12:54 p.m. Sept. 12 to a construction site in the 4000 block of South Almont Avenue, north of Newark Road.
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Imlay City police and firefighters dug the 38-year-old Dryden resident out of the hole by hand, according to officials.
The man had severe head trauma and was dead when they pulled him out, authorities said.
An autopsy was conducted by the Oakland County Medical Examiner's Office, police said. It determined the man died as a result of contact with the excavating equipment at the scene, officials said.
The victim's injuries couldn't have been caused by the collapse of the site or falling dirt, the medical examiner said.
The victim was dead before he was buried in the trench, according to the medical examiner.
A warrant request has been submitted to the Lapeer County Prosecutor's Office to determine proper criminal charges, officials said.