Well-known contractor found murdered
It first appeared as a short paragraph on the daily press release from the Police Department. An unidentified body had been found on the side of the Northern Highway. Our first reaction was a hit and run: a drunk driver perhaps, a drunk pedestrian, or maybe both. But as the morning unfolded, it became clear that the appearance of this particular corpse was no accident.
Jacqueline Woods, Reporting
The body has been identified as sixty-three year old Philip Chin, owner of HLC Engineering Company and a well known political activist for the United Democratic Party. Chin was wearing a black and white shirt with grey pants and black shoes. His hands were tied behind his back with a black string and there were several gunshot wounds to the head, chest and back.
This is where Philip Chin lives. The police are scheduled to visit the home to look for clues that may tell them why he was murdered. Authorities say they do not know if Chin was taken from here, but that he was abducted, killed and his body dumped on the side of the road.
The body, which was lying faced up, was discovered by a young man in the vicinity of Biscayne Village by mile twenty-five on the Northern Highway. The unnamed citizen, who did not wish to appear on camera, says he was on the road shortly after 7 a.m. when he came upon the gruesome sight.
Voice of Villager
“This morning I mid di pass on the highway and I just see a body lying face down with its hands tied behind ih back.”
It’s not certain when Chin was murdered, but villagers say they heard gunshots in the area shortly after nine on Monday night. The
UDP’s national campaign manager, Audrey Wallace, says Chin last spoke with his family late that evening.
Audrey Wallace, National Campaign Manager, UDP
“They spoke with Philip after 5:00 yesterday evening, so he was not missing at all to their knowledge. Philip moved here from Jamaica a long time ago, so we’re talking about his common-law wife and children and that’s who we’re referring to, so he lived alone pretty much. So if he had not been home during the course of the night they would not have been aware. But he spoke to his family after 5:00 yesterday evening.”
According to Chin’s family, his red Toyota four runner is missing, and they suspect an abduction may have occurred at his residence at mile two and a half on the Northern Highway. The family says when they went to the location, they observed a light on in an upstairs room and according to them, it was not like Chin to leave any lights on in the house. Wallace says Chin, who was a member of their campaign committee will be missed.
Audrey Wallace
“He has served the United Democratic Party well, from the time he started working with us. I have been working personally with Philip Chin. As the national campaign manager for the UDP, he’s on my national campaign committee and we have been working very hard and very well together. So, this is a tremendous party loss and a personal loss, because I’ve gotten to know him so well. So it really is a sad day. Again, we don’t know the circumstances, no one knows the circumstances surrounding his death, but it’s just scary, with all the crime that is occurring in the country. I sincerely hope that once again we can all come together and figure out a way to end this crime wave.”
Jacqueline Woods reporting for News 5.
The death of Philip Chin brings the number of murders in 2002 to nine. These include Kirk “Psycho” Thompson, Edmund Velasquez, Mark Ireland, Anthony Adderley, Deon Lewis, Russell Smith, Harwin White and Sandra Williams. No arrests have been made in any of these cases.
