BROOKSVILLE — A corrections officer at the Sumter Correctional Institution was killed late Tuesday when his motorcycle collided with a pickup truck as he drove home after his work shift, authorities said.

Michael Wayne Poot, 43, of Weeki Wachee, was heading west on Wiscon Road around 11:30 p.m. on his 2001 Honda motorcycle when a truck driven by Robert Donatelli Marchiori, 17, of Brooksville, turned into his path at the intersection at Horse Lake Road, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

The truck crashed into the motorcycle, flinging Poot's body a few feet away onto the east shoulder of Horse Lake. Poot was then taken to Brooksville Regional Hospital, where he later died from his injuries, the report said.

Poot was not wearing a helmet, according to the FHP. Charges are pending against Marchiori.

One of Poot's friends and supervisors, Col. Danny Olinger, said Poot was respected and well-liked among his co-workers.

"He was an outstanding guy, very friendly and a very hard worker," Olinger said. "Everybody is pretty sad out here. He will not be forgotten."

A message left at Poot's home in Weeki Wachee wasn't immediately returned Wednesday.
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