LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WHAS11) – Pope Lick Trestle has garnered a lot of attention over the years thanks to a local legend, and this weekend that attention turned fatal.
Talk of a “goat man” living under the Pope Lick Trestle near Jeffersontown often brings out thrill seekers.
Investigators believe that 26-year-old Roquel Bain was in Louisville with her boyfriend on a paranormal sightseeing trip.
The couple was supposed to head out to Waverly Hills, but they never made it after deciding to check on the legend of the goat man on their own.
“The myth is you have to walk on the bridge to see the goat man," Ron Crouch said.
Crouch says for years the legend has kept people flocking to the area, but he's never understood what all the fuss was about.
“The only thing I see is a few deer every once in a while,” Crouch said. “I wouldn’t confuse those with a goat.”
To try and improve safety in the area signs have been put up along with fencing which has been padlocked shut.
However, that hasn’t kept people from sliding through the gate, going out on the tracks, and breaking the law.
“People might say if they hadn’t gone here, or if they hadn’t gone there, but you just don’t know and you can’t live your life that way,” Tina Mattingly said. “When there are signs that clearly state private property no trespassing there’s a reason for it.”
As the owner of Waverly Hills, Tina Mattingly was supposed to be giving Bain a tour of the Sanatorium the night of her death.
Mattingly now hopes that paranormal investigators will think twice before taking a risk with their lives.
“I cried and I’m very upset over it,” Mattingly said. “It’s very sad. I really wish it just hadn’t happened. It’s just not worth it.”
An LMPD spokesman says that Bain's boyfriend will not be charged with trespassing for being out on the trestle illegally.
Norfolk Southern Railroad says they will work with local law enforcement to try and find ways to shore up the area and keep people off the tracks.