A top military general in Guatemala and four other officers were killed Wednesday when their military helicopter crashed near the Mexican border.
Guatemalan Defense Minister Manuel Lopez confirmed that General Rudy Ortiz was among the five people killed in the crash.
Ortiz and the other officers were on a routine inspection of military installations when the Bell 206 helicopter went down in the village of El Nenton.
Lopez said the cause of the crash is under investigation, adding that weather may have been a factor.
General Ortiz has been touted by Guatemalan media as a potential defense minister in recent weeks.
The president of Guatemala, Otto Perez, offered his condolences via Twitter.