Mystery surrounds the death of U.B. student

An eighteen year old university student is dead and tonight police and his family are trying to piece together how it happened. Police reports are that on Thursday afternoon, eighteen year old Juan Baeza was travelling home with two other U.B. students when they hitched a ride with Leroy Jacobs of Orange Walk Town in the pan of his pick-up truck. It is reported that the students were drinking and while on their way, some “trouble” happened among the three and Baeza fell, hitting his head on a crate in the pan of the vehicle. A motionless, but breathing Baeza was then taken home by the two friends.

According to family members, when the two students brought Baeza home, they told them that he was drunk. It was not until later, when his uncle came home and checked on him that he noticed the young man had no pulse. When they took him to the hospital between five and six in the evening, doctors confirmed that Baeza was dead and had in fact been dead for several hours.

Tonight, the family is trying to confirm exactly what happened to Baeza and have heard several reports about what may have transpired. They have been told by different sources that the boys were fighting in the pan of the truck; that Juan fell from the back of the truck; and even that he was pushed out. The driver has claimed that he doesn’t know what happened because it was too dark; even though the incident reportedly happened after three in the afternoon. The family told us that the uncle reports seeing a big bruise on Baeza’s head.

Police are holding the two friends who were travelling with Baeza for questioning. Meanwhile, a post mortem is tentatively scheduled for tomorrow. Juan Baeza was scheduled to graduate from U.B. in December.