An illegal alien has been found dead inside an industrial oven at a cereal plant in Missouri, according to police.
The Guatemalan national was using a fake identity to work illegally at the plant.
The death has prompted a federal workplace investigation.
The incident is raising serious questions about employment practices and immigration enforcement.
According to the Perryville Police Department, officers, firefighters, and emergency responders were dispatched to the Gilster-Mary Lee Cereal Plant in Perryville.
Police had received reports that a man was trapped inside a large industrial oven that had been shut down.
By the time emergency crews reached the scene, the man, identified as 38-year-old Nicolas Lopez Gomez, was already dead.
Gomez was working under the alias Edward Avila.
The Perry County Coroner’s Office confirmed Gomez’s death.
An investigation is now underway involving the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to determine how the incident occurred and whether safety protocols were followed.
In a statement, Perry County Coroner Meghan Ellis said:
“Our offices will work with them to determine how this occurred.”
The U.S. Department of Labor confirmed that OSHA has launched an “open and ongoing investigation” into the incident.
However, the department declined to release further details