Adrian Hedden
Carlsbad Current-Argus
achedden@currentargus.com

Artesia police identified human bones found in September as belonging to a transient man last seen three years ago when he was released from jail.

Skeletal remains of John W. Littleton, 53, were found Sept. 29 near the train tracks at 300 N. 1st Street in Artesia after a train conductor with Burlington Northern Santa Fe found the remains and called police.

The identification of Littleton was announced by the Artesia Police Department in a Wednesday, Dec. 3, news release. The remains were identified by police based on initial findings by the Office of the Medical Investigator, according to the release. An autopsy was ongoing, the release read, and police were continuing to investigate the cause of Littleton’s death.

The call leading to discovery of the remains came in about 2:50 p.m., police said, when what initially appeared to be a decomposed foot was found along the tracks near a loading dock owned by Artesia Ford Company.

The rest of the body was found beneath the dock after police responded, said Commander Pete Quinones with the Artesia Police Department.

Quinones said the incident, like all death investigations, was being treated as a homicide until evidence is found to the contrary.

Police said Littleton was last seen alive on May 31, 2022, when he was released from the Eddy County Detention Center.

Quinones said Littleton was a known transient in Artesia, as many local businesses called authorities over the past several years to report him locking himself in bathrooms and trespassing on various properties.

“He was well known in our town for being vagrant and causing problems around town,” Quinones said. “He had caused problems with a lot of businesses. I never knew him to be violent. We didn’t consider him a threat.”

Littleton’s most recent arrest was on March 7, 2022, before his release on May 31 of that year, jail records indicate. He did not incur any criminal charges before being discharged from the detention center.

Court records show Littleton’s last criminal charges stemmed from an arrest in April 2019 when he was charged with felony battery against a peace officer, along with misdemeanor criminal trespassing and resisting arrest.

That arrest occurred, police said, after an employee at an Allsup’s store in Carlsbad found Littleton sleeping in a store bathroom. When officers attempted to wake him, he kicked an officer in the leg and threw multiple punches as he was restrained.

A stun gun was used and Littleton was arrested. Police noted he had five previous charges for battery on an officer, according to the criminal complaint.

The felony charge was dismissed in exchange for no-contest pleas on the misdemeanors, records show, and Littleton was sentenced in March 2020 to 13 months and 35 days’ incarceration at the Eddy County Detention Center.

Quinones said police had not had any interaction with Littleton in the years since he was last released from custody, and that Littleton was one of a “handful” of known transients police were frequently called about around town.

“We thought maybe he was in another town. With finding these skeletal remains, obviously that was not the case,” Quinones said.

Managing Editor Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, or @AdrianHedden on the social media platform X.