A veteran police officer lost his life on Saturday while doing what he had done for more than two decades: reporting for duty. Police Constable Armando Toledano was traveling from Orange Walk to Belize City for work at the Raccoon Street Police Station when his motorcycle collided with a Ford Explorer near mile twenty-seven on the Philip Goldson Highway. The crash has left the Belize Police Department mourning one of its own, a twenty-four-year veteran described by colleagues as an inspiration. As investigators continue their work, police have served the driver of the vehicle with a notice of intended prosecution. ASP Stacy Smith shares more on Toledano’s service and the ongoing investigation.
Stacy Smith
ASP Stacy Smith, Staff Officer
“The Belize Police Department and the Ministry of Home Affairs and Enterprise express sincere condolences to the family and colleagues of PC 500, Armando Toledano of Orange Walk District. PC Toledano succumbed to the injuries that he sustained in a traffic accident which occurred on Saturday, 15 August 2026, at around two-fifty p.m. near mile twenty-seven on the Philip Goldson Highway. What we have learned so far in the course of the ongoing investigation is that PC Toledano was traveling on his Lifan brand motorcycle from the direction of Orange Walk to Belize City when upon reaching near mile twenty-seven, a collision occurred between the motorcycle he was traveling on and a Ford Explorer that was traveling in the opposite direction. A notice of intended prosecution has been served on the driver of the motor vehicle who has been cooperating with police and who has also provided a urine sample. PC Toledano was a serving member of the Belize Police Department for twenty-four years up to the time of his passing and he was posted at the Eastern Division, where he inspired his colleagues and gained the confidence of the public that he served.”
Shane Williams
“Whats the Department’s policy on keeping officers close to their home.”
ASP Stacy Smith
“The department certainly strives to have officers posted as nearest to their homes. However, you would know that a vast majority of the staffing of the police department requires to, you know, be work placed in Belize City Eastern Division. And there is also a policy of not wanting to have people be in communities that they are too familiar with. We have been striving to ensure that officers, as I said, are placed as close as possible to their homes or that we put arrangements in place to enable their transportation.”
Traffic was blocked for almost two hours near Biscayne Village following the incident. Condolences have poured in on social media following news of the incidents.
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