Caribbean news. The family of a British man missing on the Caribbean island of St Lucia are awaiting the identification of a body found in the seat of his burnt-out car. Hotelier and property developer Oliver Gobat, 38, was reported missing last Friday.
The Foreign Office is urgently investigating reports of his death. Double Olympic decathlon gold medallist Daley Thompson paid a personal tribute to Mr Gobat on Twitter.
The retired athlete, who has carried out fitness sessions at the family’s five-star Cap Maison hotel on the island, wrote: “My love and thoughts go out to friends and family of Ollie Gobat. He was a gem and his family must have been so proud of him. RIP, my friend.”
Former heptathlete and Olympic gold medallist Denise Lewis also tweeted: “Just reading the shocking news about the death of Oliver Gobat. So very sad. My condolences to his family and friends. Such a lovely guy.”
The victim was reportedly shot twice in the head before being doused with petrol and set alight, although police have refused to confirm this. A post-mortem examination is due to be held later.
An FCO spokesperson said: “We are aware of reports and are looking into them urgently.” It is claimed residents in nearby properties reported hearing sounds of gunshots before seeing flames coming from the vehicle.
A short time later, Mr Gobat’s burnt-out Range Rover was found with a body of a man in the passenger seat. It is reported there were no keys in the vehicle and the doors were locked.
A St Lucia police spokesman said: “The badly burned body of a man was found in a car in the Cap Estate at the roadside but we have no identity for the victim.
“The homicide department are investigating the death. “We can confirm that we are searching for a missing man called Oliver Gobat, but we cannot confirm the identity of the dead man because of the state of the body.
“We do not know Mr Gobat’s whereabouts at the moment.” Mr Gobat’s parents, who live in Esher, Surrey, are understood to have flown out to St Lucia. Mr Gobat represented Surrey juniors at cricket and attended Leeds University. Article courtesy http://www.minsterfm.com
