The 31-year-old man who was shot to death on Friday night in eastern New Providence was found with a handgun and several rounds of ammunition, police said. Police identified him as Sean Neville, of Woodland Way, in Winton. When police arrived on the scene, Neville was lying in the road outside the driver's door of a rental car he was driving in the Culbert's Hill area, off Prince Charles Drive. Police said the gunman approached Neville head on. The rental car was also sprayed with bullets.
Neville is the son of psychiatrist Dr. Michael Neville and Sandra Neville of the Bahamas Crisis Centre. Police confirmed that Neville's car was set on fire late last year, but said it was too early say whether the matters are connected. Police appealed to anyone with information to come forward.
St. Anne's MP Hubert Chipman, who lives in the neighborhood, said the murder left some area residents fearful. Chipman said many of them were already weary of the crime situation.
"I'm horrified with what's going on because when you really look at it, the Winton area was relatively a quiet area, very quiet," he said. "But over the last several months we have had a lot of robberies and [break-ins]. I've spoken to the police on several occasions about this. All the neighbors are concerned. So now to have something like this, a killing in the area, it's time to take stock."
Chipman described Neville and his family as "decent people". Agriculture Minister V. Alfred Gray, who also lives in the neighborhood, said he was shocked and saddened to learn of Neville's death. He said he hopes those responsible are brought to justice. Gray, who is a friend of the Neville family, said more must be done to tackle crime.
Despite the government announcing various initiatives in the last two and a half years, the murder rate and other violent crimes have remained high. Last year, 123 people were murdered in The Bahamas. Neville's murder is the 24th for the year.
Following his death, there was an outpouring of shock and grief on social media. Neville had a daughter and two siblings. His father, Dr. Neville, is well known for his work in the anti-crime arena. In 2008, he was a member of the National Advisory Council on Crime and wrote the dissenting view.
"It is normal to be angry and want revenge at the loss of a loved one, but society must consider more than raw emotion," he wrote. "The removal of the death penalty, in my opinion, will serve to speed up the judicial process; it will remove the need for a unanimous verdict by the jury as without the penalty of death a two thirds majority can obtain a conviction; it will reduce some of the emotions in the trial and the abolition of the death penalty will enormously reduce the number of cases taken to the Privy Council, which will then reduce the work load of the attorney general's office, and save the Bahamian taxpayer astronomical sums of money."
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