A Canadian soldier who was killed last week had stepped on an explosive device before falling to his death in the Panjwaii district of southern Afghanistan, a military official said Sunday.

Pte. Sébastien Courcy from 2nd battalion, Royal 22nd Regiment, based in Quebec City, was killed Thursday in Afghanistan. (Department of National Defence)

The latest news about Pte. Sébastien Courcy was released shortly before the start of a repatriation ceremony for the young man at Canadian Forces Base Trenton in eastern Ontario.

Pte. Sébastien Courcy, 26, died Thursday after being knocked from a mountain top, said Lt.-Col. Mike Patrick, chief of operations for Task Force Kandahar. It's unclear whether the explosion was caused by an improvised explosive device or an old landmine, he said.

Earlier reports quoted a spokesman for National Defence in Ottawa as saying the soldier fell from "high ground."

Courcy was taking part in Operation Constrictor IV, a three-day effort designed to clear an area near the village of Nakhonay of Taliban bomb-making facilities.

The village has been under Taliban control for at least two years, according to military officials.

Troops dismantled four roadside bomb-making factories and seized weapons, including .50-calibre machine-guns, bazookas and suicide vests.

Courcy was a member of the 2nd battalion, Royal 22nd regiment, based at CFB Valcartier north of Quebec City.

He was the 125th soldier to die in the Afghan mission, which began in 2002. The young soldier had joined the military in 2006 and was on his first deployment in Afghanistan.

Defence Minister Peter MacKay and Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Walt Natynczyk were among those who paid their respects at the 8 Wing Canadian Forces Base Trenton.

With files from The Canadian Press