Nicholas Hoyte, 29, was a former resident of Fifth Street Alberttown, Georgetown who lived at Mc Doom, East Bank Demerara shortly before his death.
Last Tuesday evening Hoyte was visiting relatives in Alberttown. This was one of the man’s habits. He was well known in the community and went by the nickname `Ziah’.
“He lived away from Alberttown but he was never out of Alberttown,” a resident told Stabroek News last week. “Ziah was always here and he took care of us…he looked out for his people here.”
Hoyte, several Alberttown residents have since said, was “a man of routine” and it would have been easy for anyone to track his whereabouts.
Hoyte’s sister, Nancy Herod, had said the man left Fifth Street and said he was “going around the corner”. Herod, speaking to Stabroek News on Friday, said that 10 to 15 minutes later she got news that Hoyte had been shot. He was pronounced dead on arrival at the Georgetown Public Hospital that night.
Reports from residents indicated that the execution-style killing occurred at about 8.45pm at Sixth and Light Streets, Alberttown. A white car reportedly drove-by; Hoyte’s murderer leaned over and shot him some seven times before the vehicle sped away.
When Stabroek News revisited the scene on Friday a resident, who requested anonymity, pointed out two security cameras in the immediate area where Hoyte was murdered. Based on the angles of these cameras and the quality of the images police may be able to monitor the flow of traffic around the time of the shooting and can possibly salvage a licence plate number.
Crime Chief Seelall Persaud, when questioned about possible footage being recovered from these cameras, said that police were “looking at it” and it is being “explored”.
The same resident told Stabroek News that Hoyte arrived at a shop located at Sixth and Light streets at about 8.30pm the night he was murdered.
“He bought a Guinness from the shop, chit-chatted a bit then went outside and I guess he went and sat in his car to drink the stout,” the resident related. “This is not unusual for him. He would normally do this.”
Minutes after Hoyte left the shop to sit in his vehicle several gunshots were heard. As soon as the shots ceased, the resident said, the white car sped by.
“That night the shop area was empty,” the resident recalled. “For some reason a lot of people weren’t around and when the gunshots were heard everyone went hiding and no one came out until a while after. The crowd started to build when news of the shooting spread.”
Hoyte’s car was parked just in front of the shop on Light Street. The white car, the resident said, would’ve come driving south along Light Street, stopped for less than a minute during which Hoyte was shot about seven times, then turned east along Sixth Street which leads to Albert Street and two possible escape routes. The white car could’ve headed south on Albert Street and move towards Regent Street or if it took the other direction, north, it would’ve moved straight to Lamaha Street. Residents could not say where the white car went after it turned on Sixth Street.
Footage
The car, the resident opined, is most definitely an important element in the police’s case. However, despite the possibility of traffic footage from the security cameras there is no guarantee that police will be able to make something of it.
A five-minute robbery at Safraz’s Bar and Restaurant on David Street, which left waitress Kulmattie Singh dead and two patrons injured, was also recorded by a hidden security camera. The Crime Chief had confirmed that police had the footage in their possession but had indicated that the images had to be enhanced.
There has since been no report of whether the police’s Information Technology (IT) Department was able to achieve this. Questioned about whether the police IT department was capable of handling such cases Persaud had refused to comment and advised this newspaper to contact that department. Efforts to contact the officer in charge of that department have been futile.
The police’s failure to move quickly and retrieve valuable evidence from Safraz’s footage has resulted in two suspects being released last week because of a failed identification parade. This lapse has raised questions about the police’s IT skills and doubts on whether they are capable of enhancing video footage to retrieve valuable information and evidence.
Even if footage of traffic on Light Street around the time of Hoyte’s murder is retrieved there is a possibility that, like the Safraz’s footage, police will be unable to process and make use of the data. Grainy footage from security cameras has been a longstanding problem for the police force.
Linked?
The Friday before Hoyte’s murder another man was killed in a similar manner on Robb Street, Georgetown.
While there has been no indication that the execution-style killings of Hoyte and Vibert Weekes are linked police have said both men are suspected to have been involved in crimes. This was said by the Crime Chief on Friday while being questioned about developments in the Hoyte and Weekes cases by this newspaper.
Weekes was shot 14 times just before midnight on January 8 by a lone gunman. He was about to enter his vehicle parked in front of Mohamed’s Enterprise on Robb Street when he was attacked.
Three other persons were in Weekes’ vehicle at the time he was shot. Weekes, 28, of North/East La Penitence, Georgetown was pronounced dead on arrival at the Woodlands Hospital.
Meanwhile, Weekes relatives have refused to speak to the media. Weekes had appeared before the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court for various offences including robbery under arms.
Police, the Crime Chief said on Friday, are investigating both murders from all possible angles.
