Several persons were last evening being questioned by police as investigations intensify into the murder of GTM Director Lionel Bert Whyte and so far there are more questions than answers.
Sources told Stabroek News last night that Whyte’s movements between 6 pm when he left work on Monday to the time he was found with stab wounds almost two hours later, are a mystery.
Speaking to Stabroek News last night, Police Commissioner (ag) Leroy Brumell said that investigators suspect several persons and the last update he had was that plans were being made toarrest them. He could not say if this was done but a source later confirmed that several arrests have been made.
Asked about a motive, Brumell said that it is not clear but from all indications “it is not robbery” since his money and gold ring were intact when he collapsed on Main Street. He said that the man’s motor car, PKK 8566 remains missing.
Based on the timeline given to this newspaper, Whyte, 45, of 79 Phoenix Park, West Bank Demerara, left his Robb and Hinck streets office sometime after 6:00 pm in his car. Around 8 pm he collapsed in front of a popular city night spot on Main Street, five corners from his workplace.
His sister Mary Whyte with whom he lived told this newspaper last night that she was baffled as to what he was doing in that area. She said that she knew that he had to meet with a study group to put some finishing touches on a final paper he had to submit as part of his Masters in Business Administration course that he was pursuing at the University of Guyana. That paper was due yesterday.
Mary said that she does not believe that her brother was in the area to buy food since he does not “eat out”. “We still seeking answers. We are looking for anyone who might know something”, the grieving woman said.
She said that Whyte’s car has vanished without a trace and there are suspicions that there was a passenger in the vehicle. That person it is believed fled in the car after stabbing Whyte who is also on the board of the Theatre Guild and a member of the West Demerara Lions Club. He was stabbed at least twice, in the neck and chest.
Mary said that the only information she has gotten so far is that some persons were held but she is clueless as to why.
Meanwhile, when Stabroek News visited the area where the stabbing occurred things were back to normal. An official of the popular night spot where Whyte collapsed said that the man came running out of Hope Street. He later ended up in front of the night spot bleeding profusely.
From all indications, Whyte was stabbed in Hope Street and ran to escape his attacker. No one recalled seeing any suspicious car driving past him before he collapsed on the roadway.
The official said that the wounded man handed his cell phone and a bunch of keys to an employee and said “Call meh family” before collapsing onto the roadway.
A taxi was immediately summoned and Whyte was rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
Shocked
Whyte’s many friends yesterday expressed shock at his passing.
The Georgetown Hospital where he was employed as a Personnel Manager up to September last year yesterday in a press release expressed profound sadness at his passing. The release said that Whyte was “loved and admired by his colleagues and will be missed dearly”.
Over at GTM’s office at Robb and Hinck streets the atmosphere was gloomy and employees were all mourning the passing of Whyte whom they described as “humble” and always a “gentleman.”
GTM’s Human Resources Manager Donna Tucker told Stabroek News that Whyte was an all rounder and was involved in every Department in the Company. She said “his passing has created a void that cannot be filled.”
She added that the loss of an employee such as Whyte is a “major” one and as such it will never be the same without him.
“He was so loved that everyone wants to be a part of his final rites…today one of our Sales Clerks had to sit her Chartered Accounting Technician course exams and she was so distraught she had to skip it, that is the impact Bert had on everyone,” Tucker related.
A teary-eyed Yasmin Bowman, GTM’s Commer-cial Marketing Officer, said that they visited his relatives earlier in the day and offered their support. She said “He will be missed dearly in every department.”
Whyte was also an actor and poet, he played the part of Ignatius “Iggie” Thomas in Merundoi and according to member of the Merundoi team Margaret Lawrence he was a gentleman whose professionalism she admired.
She said “I hope that the person who did this abhorrent thing is brought to justice and dealt with.”
Lawrence in a brief telephone interview with Stabroek News said that she will remember Whyte as a good and promising actor who was strong in his delivery, noting that he would always come to the studio in an upbeat mood and ready to work. She added that he would add his own personal touches to his scripts.
“The person I know would not have fought back, he would have said take it all and go because those are material things,” she stated.
Whyte also starred in short films such as Kojo Mc Pherson’s “Beached” and others such as Fences.
