An American woman is dead and a senior police officer is being investigated after his vehicle collided with the victim's. The incident occurred this afternoon, sometime after 1, in Buena Vista Village. The two were driving on opposite sides of the road when the American national reportedly lost control of her vehicle. That's only the preliminary information, however, and the commissioner, Chester Williams, assured the media that the officer, ACP Aaron Guzman, would not be given special treatment because he is a cop. Rather, he will be investigated like any other road traffic incident - urine sample and all.
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police
"What investigation is showing so far is that while Mr. Guzman was coming towards Orange Walk, the other vehicle was going towards Corozal and was trying to overtake another vehicle that was in front of it. And the driver may have lost control resulting in the tragic fatal accident. I have dispatched ACP Alden Dawson to Corozal Town to be the lead investigator in that matter. I have also directed that all the protocols that should be associated with any traffic accident be fully complied with. I also spoke to Mr. Guzman, who is a bit shaken up but also in good health and informed him of my decision and the need for him to corporate fully with the investigation. He assured me that he is going to comply with the investigation. And so, we will see how we proceed from there."
Jules Vasquez
"We see that he was in an official vehicle. Was he on official business in that area?"
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police
"Yes, he had gone to Corozal to pick up some parts for his assigned vehicle, because the one was he was in is assigned to ACP Bart Jones. His assigned vehicle is in the garage and he had gone to Corozal to pick up some parts for that vehicle."
At the time of the incident, there were reports that ACP Guzman had contraband in his vehicle. The ComPol quickly shot down those rumors.
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police
"I spoke to Superintendent Gabriel who happened to be one of the most senior officers to arrive on the scene first. I directed Mr. Gabriel to ensure that a search of the vehicle be conducted. That search was done based on what Mr. Gabriel told me. He informed me that indeed there are some goods in the vehicle. But Mr. Guzman do have receipts for the goods. Apparently, he purchased them from, I do not know if you those people from the side of the road leaving Corozal almost in front of the 24/7 gas station. So those are the persons he purchased the items from. So, they are not contraband."
We confirmed with the ComPol that ACP Guzman does have an official driver who was on other duties.
