A soldier of the Belize Defence Force, Mike Cho, 22, of San Jose Village, Toledo, who was posted at Camp Fairweather in Punta Gorda, was killed on the spot when the motorcycle he was riding collided head-on with a Mitsubishi pickup truck, causing him massive head and body injuries. He was buried today with full honors in Santa Rosa Village.

The incident occurred about 5:15 p.m. Friday, August 30, on the Southern Highway between Miles 83 and 84 at a location between Tambran and Medina Bank villages.

Police said that Cho was travelling on his motorcycle from Punta Gorda towards Santa Rosa Village on the Southern Highway when a pickup truck that was travelling in the opposite direction, being driven at the time by Natasha Gomez, 20, of Punta Gorda, collided into him head-on.

As a result of the impact, Cho landed on the pavement and died almost immediately. Among the severe injuries he sustained, his left foot was almost amputated.

Police said that after crashing into the motorcycle, the pickup crashed into a cyclist who was riding his beach cruiser on the right side of the road in the same direction as the truck.

As a result, the back wheel of the bicycle was extensively damaged. The rider, however, escaped with only minor injuries to his left foot.

Private Cho and the cyclist were taken to the Punta Gorda Hospital, where Cho was declared dead on arrival, and he was taken to the morgue to await a postmortem.

The cyclist was treated and released from the hospital.

Police said that a charge has not yet been brought, because they are still investigating the accidents.