Man Accused of Pushing Woman in Front of Train to Stand Trial for Murder

RIVERSIDE (CNS) – A transient accused of shoving his 52-year-old girlfriend in front of a train in west Riverside, causing her to be struck and killed, must stand trial for murder, a judge ruled Friday.

Kevin Errol Lewis, 42, allegedly pushed Mary Kay Maltos of Riverside in front of a freight train at the Madison Street crossing, just south of the Riverside (91) Freeway, last April.

Following a preliminary hearing at the Riverside Hall of Justice, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Matthew Perantoni found there was sufficient evidence to warrant a trail for the murder count.

The judge scheduled a post-preliminary hearing arraignment for April 28 and left the defendant’s bail set at $1 million. Lewis is being held at the Smith Correctional Facility in Banning.

According to Riverside police Officer Ryan Railsback, about 6:35 a.m. on April 11, 2022, Lewis was involved in a domestic altercation with Maltos adjacent to the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad tracks.

"The investigation determined Lewis … and the female adult victim were engaged in a verbal argument that became physical, during which Lewis pushed the victim into the moving train," Railsback said.

No one on board the train, which stopped after the victim was hit, was injured.

Patrol officers reached the location within minutes and found Maltos dead, after which they initiated a search for the defendant, who was quickly located nearby and taken into custody without incident, according to the police spokesman.

Court records show that, at the time of his arrest, Lewis had multiple unresolved misdemeanor cases going back three years. However, he has no documented felony convictions in Riverside County.

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