The devastated daughter of a man who was found murdered in Livingston paid a heartbreaking tribute to her father on his birthday.
Gary Nicol, 50, died after he was found seriously injured on the West Lothian town’s Bank Lane at 2am on Thursday, September 26. Following a post-mortem examination, detectives initially treated his death as unexplained.
However, further inquiries carried out by a dedicated team of specialist officers led to the circumstances being treated as murder. Inquiries by Police Scotland’s Major Investigation Team remain ongoing.
Several days after Gary’s death, on October 2 – which would have been his 51st birthday – the HGV driver’s daughter, Taylor, paid a heart-wrenching tribute to her late father.
Writing on Facebook, Taylor said: “Today is your birthday dad which makes this time even more harder. I would like to think heaven has a pint of Tennent’s and a wee glass of dark rum and cola waiting for you.”
On the evening of Gary’s murder, it’s believed he drove to Bankton Lane in his black Ford Mondeo car, registration GN02GRN. He arrived at the scene around midnight before he was murdered.
He arrived at the scene around midnight before he is believed to have been murdered. Images showed a forensic tent erected at the scene with a large cordon in place last month. Detectives have urged anybody who may have spotted Gary’s car or any other vehicles in the area at the time of the incident to come forward.
An online portal has been set up for the public to send information directly to the major incident teams based at the Scottish Crime Campus.
Detective Chief Inspector Jonathan Pleasance, from Police Scotland’s Major Investigation Team said: “Gary was well known in his local community and his family are devastated. He was a father, a son, a brother, an uncle. His family, at the moment, are desperate for answers and that is what we’re seeking to get and that is why I am asking the public to assist us with their inquiries.”
He added: “We know that Gary took himself in his car down to Banton Lane overnight between Wednesday 25 September and Thursday 26 September. We continue to investigate the reason behind that. We have got a very open mind as to what took him down there but if the public can assist us with this, I’d urge them to contact us. Any murder causes concern in the community and that is why we are focused on bringing the person or persons responsible to justice as soon as we can.
“That is why I am seeking assistance from the public today – no matter how small someone thinks a piece of information might be, I’d urge them to contact us as soon as they can.
“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.”
Meanwhile, others remembered Gary as a “great guy” who “helped so many people”.
Laurayne Kyle said: “Gary was a great guy, he made me laugh so much with his banter, so kind in helping out clubs too. He helped so many people. Spoke about his family on the phone so proudly and also with Tayler’s singing how he was so proud of her going to gigs with her, he will be extremely missed.”
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