Tributes have been pouring in for a West Lothian grandad whose death is being treated by police as murder.
Gary Nicol (50), from Livingston was found in the early hours of Thursday, September 26 on Bankton Lane with serious injuries and sadly was pronounced dead at the scene.
Enquiries were carried out by a dedicated team of specialist police officers following a post mortem and the circumstances are now being treated as murder.
Mr Nicol’s family are being supported by specially trained officers.
Those who knew Gary took to Facebook to pay tribute, describing him as “a true gentleman”.
Annette Fleming said: “I have lots of memories from watching Gary grow up. He never lost his cheeky side and was an expert at winding people up.
“He had a terrific sense of humour and laughed at things others couldn’t see the funny side of. He was a very proud dad of Cameron, Tayler and Finlay and he just doted on his grandkids.
“He will be sorely missed and my heart is breaking for all of the family, especially his parents who are the nicest people you could ever meet. Sending all my love to all of them.”
Lorna Thomson said: “Such awful news. “We were in turkey this time last year with Big G celebrating his 50th Birthday. What lovely memories.
“Sending all my love to Robina Nicol sandy and all off Gary’s family.
“And of course to Laurabelle Duffy and Rebecca who spent the last 10 years with Gary, and I know these were full of fun and laughter. My heart is hurting for you both.
“I hope you all have the strength to get through this horrific time.”
Susan McGregor added: “I will be forever grateful for all your help over the years Gary! Nothing was ever a problem, a true gentleman.”
Extensive enquiries continue to be carried out by officers from Police Scotland’s Major Investigation Team.
Officers from the local division and operational support units have also been involved in this complex investigation.
From enquiries so far, detectives have established that Mr Nicol drove to Bankton Lane in his black Ford Mondeo car, registration GN02GRN and arrived there around midnight.
The Major Incident Public Portal (MIPP) is a website that gives the public access to a form so they can send information directly to the major incident teams based at the Scottish Crime Campus and can be accessed here
Detective Chief Inspector Jonathan Pleasance, from Police Scotland’s Major Investigation Team, said: “Our thoughts are with Mr Nicol’s family and friends at this very difficult time.
“It is vital that we get answers for them and we are fully committed to tracing the person responsible as soon as possible.
“Our investigation into Mr Nicol’s death continues and I would urgently appeal to anyone with information who has not already spoken with us to please do so.
“We are keen to hear from anyone who saw a car of this description in the area around midnight or anyone or vehicles in and around the Bankton Lane area. We are trying to piece together Mr Nicol’s movements prior to his body being found and would ask anyone with any information to contact officers.
“This is a challenging investigation and any piece of information, no matter how small or insignificant you think it is, could prove vital so please do pass it on.”
Local area commander Chief Inspector Elaine McArthur-Kerr, said: “We understand the significant impact this has had on the people of Livingston and there is a dedicated team of officers working on this investigation.
“I would like to reassure the community that officers are working hard to trace whoever is responsible, with CCTV footage being gathered from the surrounding area and door to door inquiries continuing.
“Detailed forensic work has been carried out and extensive searches of nearby woodland have been undertaken by specialist officers.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact 101, quoting incident number 0278 of 26 September, 2024. Alternatively, you can call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 where information can be given anonymously.
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