In a statement, the party said that for as long as most can remember, there has been a "Hamilton Gas Station" at Buxton.

It said this has been "an enduring symbol and leader for Afro-Guyanese village entrepreneurship while it provided jobs for the community, and goods and essential services to all travellers on the East Coast Highway."

The PPP said Mr. Hamilton was a well-liked and respected young businessman and community leader on the East Coast Demerara where his loss would be keenly felt by the business and wider community.

"The arrival of the bandits in Buxton last year saw Mr. Hamilton closing his recently built hotel that provided employment opportunities for residents and benefits for the entire country", it noted.

The PPP said this latest outrage was "part of a continued onslaught on order and good citizenship" and called on law-abiding residents of Buxton "to cooperate fully with the security forces in ridding their communities of the bandits, kidnappers and murderers."

"Residents are urged to work with the authorities to bring to an end the state of siege, and trauma caused by the bandits. They must also cooperate in bringing the recent perpetrators of the attempted kidnapping of the schoolgirl of Bladen Hall and other atrocities, including the slaying of Ronald Ramsay, to justice", the PPP said.