Hamilton shooting motive
Financial deal went sour
-sources suggest
Stabroek News
March 24, 2003
The police are continuing their investigations into the shooting of a Buxton businessman last Friday, and it is the view of some villagers that the man might have been killed as a result of a financial transaction gone sour.
Thirty-five year-old Brian Hamilton, co-owner of the Hamilton Gas Station on the Buxton Public road and a father of one, was shot and killed as he sat in his office at Buxton.
Robbery was not the motive of the perpetrators as nothing was stolen from the station.
A source yesterday told Stabroek News that the man had been involved in a financial transaction with someone and after he had fallen short on his payment he was given an ultimatum which he did not meet.
It is understood that some residents of Buxton are very tight-lipped on the issue, not wanting to say anything.
Hamilton was described as a well-loved person in the troubled village and was said to be for peace.
His father, Oscar Hamilton, had expressed the view last Friday that he did not believe that it was someone from the village who had shot his son, since he was "well-loved." The father had even voiced concerns about the repercussions of his son's death.
This was the opinion too of many other villagers.
However, from all reports the perpetrators escaped into the village, and it is generally known that persons from outside the village cannot not enter Buxton without first being questioned.
This newspaper had been told by a police source on Friday that it was a lone gunman who had walked into the station and had shot the man twice through the glass door.
But reports suggest that there were two gunmen; this was confirmed yesterday by Assistant Superintendent David Ramnarine, Police Public Relations Officer, who said that investigations had revealed that two persons had been involved.
A source yesterday told this newspaper that the gunmen had scaled the fence at the back of the gas station and escaped into an alleyway.
Meanwhile, there is some debate as to the whereabouts of the tapes from surveillance cameras at the station.
The older Hamilton last Friday had confirmed that the station had been equipped with cameras and that they had been on, but he had declined to say anything about their location.
The police on Saturday had issued a press release denying a report on Capitol News on Friday night where it was stated that the tapes had been handed over to the police.
"Contrary to a misleading news item on Capitol News yesterday evening, the Guy-ana Police Force wishes to make it pellucidly clear that we are not in possession of any such video tape, as none had been handed over to us, up to the time of this press release, 13:05 hrs today.
"The interested party may wish to have an audience with those responsible for the affairs of that Gas Station," the release said.
Another section of the media reported yesterday that the tapes had in fact been handed over to the police, but when contacted yesterday Ramnarine could not confirm this, saying that up to 1:00pm on Saturday no tapes had been delivered.
The report had stated that a lawyer who is a friend of the family had handed over the tapes.
However, when the lawyer was contacted and asked if the tapes had been handed over, he asked, "Are there any tapes?" He disputed the re-ports, saying that he was unaware that any tapes existed.
Investigations are continuing.
