Businessman murdered in what looks like hired hit

He was young and wealthy, inheritor of a successful family enterprise that had its roots in the mud and sawdust of a Haulover Creek boatyard but blossomed in the high tech world of satellite and cable television. Richard Hoare, having expanded into tourism and other fields, was a guy who seemed to have it all. Last night, however, someone decided he was better off dead.

Jacqueline Godwin, Reporting
There are far more troubling questions than answers in the cold-blooded murder of prominent businessman thirty-four year old Richard Hoare. Hoare’s lifeless body was found inside his vehicle around nine-thirty Wednesday night on Vasquez Avenue. He had been shot one time to the back of the head just behind the right ear by someone believed to have been travelling along with him in his S.U.V.

Ashley Rocke, Adopted Brother of Murder Victim
“As I know Richard he is a philanthropist and I’ve seen him given chances after chances to the people who worked for him and it behoves me to wonder who would want to kill him.”

Belize City police do not believe that robbery is the motive because Hoare was found with all his jewellery and his wallet that contained six hundred dollars.

Ashley Rocke
“I never really was involved in the business aspect of his life, but as a brother, as a person, a relationship that we had, I didn’t see him as a person who would get into trouble.”

According to this man, who did not wish to appear on camera, although he thought he heard what sounded like a shot the way the incident unfolded he thought he had witnessed a traffic accident.

Voice of witness
“A gunshot initially, followed by the vehicle accelerating then crashing into the first vehicle then into the fence.”

Jacqueline Godwin
“When you ran up to the vehicle, what did you see?”

Voice of witness
“The person slumped over, appeared hurt and apparently dead. So I just tell everybody not to touch the vehicle, not to interfere until the police got here.”

While preliminary investigations have led authorities to believe that two men were along with Hoare when he was killed, this witness says he only saw one suspicious person running away from the scene.

Voice of witness
“It’s possible, but I am sure I saw one, leaving the front passenger side.”

Jacqueline Godwin
“How did this person look?”

Voice of witness
“Dark skin, about five-four to five-six, slim-built, undershirt, probably a short pants, it could have be long, but from the point where I was looking, you couldn’t actually see.”

The suspect ran through this alley that connects to Gentle Avenue and then made his escape through another alley where witnesses recall seeing a man who matches the suspect’s description jump into a late model small black car with no license plates on Lizarraga Avenue. The witness says not until he approached the S.U.V. was he was able to recognize Hoare who he had known for quite sometime.

Jacqueline Godwin
“I understand that he’s not the type of individual to invite strangers in his vehicle; that he would have had to know this individual.”

Voice of witness
“More than likely, more than likely somebody he knew because he was not accustomed to dealing with anybody he doesn’t know that well, by himself.”

Police would not discuss the specifics of the case other than to say that they are investigating the homicide from all angles.

Aaron Guzman, O.C., C.I.B. Belize City
“We have two groups of investigators on the ground right now and we are interviewing witnesses to see what we can make of it.”

Jacqueline Godwin
“Was any expended shell found inside the vehicle?”

Aaron Guzman
“Initially, we haven’t found any expended shell, but as you realise it was night, so we did an initial process out there and we brought in the vehicle and as you have seen in the compound, it’s cordoned off and we are waiting on one other technician to do some other technical work on it because obviously there is blood splatter in the vehicle and we need to do other certain things where blood is concerned before we can proceed and do a more thorough search during the daylight hours. … Right now we are trying to find out what is the motive, I will not speculate at this stage.”

News Five understands, however, that shortly after nine that night Hoare was at his business place at Baymen Cable Network when he first received a telephone call. Shortly afterward, Hoare left the building, got into his vehicle and drove off.

Aaron Guzman
“Well obviously we have his properties that he had on him in, including his cell phone, and yes, we will do whatever we can to trace phone calls made by him, phone calls received by him and obviously we have had cooperation with the telecommunication companies before, so I don’t foresee a problem with that, and yes, we will go that angle to get that information.”

Exactly where Hoare came in contact with his killer or killers remains a mystery, but business associates suspect Hoare was set up. The question is, by whom? Hoare was an avid sportsman by nature and he was also no stranger to wheeling and dealing. One lead that may be just a coincidence is that earlier that day Hoare is said to have finalised and signed a deal in which he sold his Ladyville cable service for a reported one point five million dollars to the Centaur Group of Orange Walk. A representative of that company told News Five that while he was shocked when he got the news he recalled that Hoare appeared to have been troubled that afternoon.

Aaron Guzman
“At this stage I will not go into detail but yes, we understand it’s a major business transaction yesterday. … I would just hope that business people realise and the general public know that if you do a major business transaction a person more than likely will not have cash on him or her. Major business transactions are normally done though the bank and by money moving from account to account or cheques.”

Today the mood at Baymen Cable was sombre as employees not only have to deal with the murder of their employer, but the future of what is the country’s pioneering cable operations.

Ashley Rocke
“I guess that will have to be dependent on the family as they come together and decide on the future of the business. As you know, Richard wasn’t only running this business, but he also had a business called Tropical Dreams where he was involved in a lot of tourism and so on, so the family will have to come together and decide the future of that.”

Hoare will also be remembered as an active member of the horseracing community who supported many events.

Funeral arrangements for Richard Hoare have not been announced and will likely await the arrival of family members from abroad.