By Emma Glanfield and Chris Pleasance From Daily Mail UK

Parents of British hotelier murdered in St Lucia tell of heartache as they plan UK and Caribbean memorials

Burnt-out Range Rover found on remote pathway in St Lucia on Friday

Charred body found inside car is believed to be that of British hotelier

Victim named locally as 38-year-old multi-millionaire Oliver ‘Ollie’ Gobat

Local reports believe he was shot in head before being set alight in vehicle

Today parents of Mr Gobat confirmed death and paid tribute to their son

Say they are ‘devastated’ by loss and ‘overwhelmed’ by messages of grief

Olympic gold medallist Daley Thompson paid tribute to Mr Gobat

Decathlete carried out workshops at family’s five-star Cap Maison hotel

He said: ‘My love & thoughts go out to friends & family of Ollie Gobat’

Model Kelly Brook and the late Amy Winehouse have stayed at his hotel

The family of a British hotelier feared murdered on the Caribbean island of St Lucia have said they are devastated by his death.

The family of Oliver Gobat confirmed today that the property developer and former Surrey junior cricketer died last Friday.

A charred body was found in a burnt-out car on the Cap Estate, an exclusive resort area on the island, hours after his family, who run a five-star boutique hotel on the island, reported him missing.

Reports suggested the victim had been shot twice in the head before being doused with petrol and set alight.

Multi-millionaire Oliver ‘Ollie’ Gobat, 38, was allegedly shot twice in the head before being doused with petrol and set alight in his Range Rover, pictured, on the Caribbean Island of St Lucia

British hotelier Oliver Gobat (pictured left with his sister-in-law Alexandra See), was allegedly found in a burnt-out Range Rover on the island of St Lucia

Today Mr Gobat’sparents have broken their silence to pay tribute to their son, saying they are ‘devastated’ over his death and ‘overwhelmed’ by messages of grief

The family have confirmed there will be a memorial service for the hotelier in Caribbean and UK

In a statement today, his family said: ‘The Gobat family are devastated by the sudden and tragic death of their son and brother Oliver on Friday April 25 in St Lucia, the island where he was born and which he loved.

‘We have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of messages and love but we do need to grieve and we would ask for privacy at this time.

‘There will be a celebration of the life of Oliver Gobat held in St Lucia for family and friends this Saturday, May 3, from 5pm and a memorial will be held in the UK in the near future with dates and details to follow.’

Though Mr Gobat was born in St Lucia, he held joint British and Caribbean nationality.

After Mr Gobat’s death, double Olympic decathlon champion Daley Thompson tweeted his condolences.

He said: ‘My love and thoughts go out to friends and family of Ollie Gobat. He was a gem and his family must have been so proud of him. RIP my friend. X’

BBC sports pundit and Olympic heptathlon gold medallist Denise Lewis also tweeted her condolences.

She said: ‘Just read the shocking news about the death of Oliver Gobat. So very sad. My condolences to his friends and family. Such a lovely guy.’

Yesterday horrific pictures emerged showing the burnt-out wreckage of a Range Rover in which local police officers found a body, thought to be that of Mr Gobat.

The charred remains were discovered hours after his family – who run a £405-a-night five star boutique hotel – reported him missing.

Police and the Foreign Office would not confirm the victim’s name – but double Olympic decathlon gold medallist Daley Thompson paid a personal tribute to the wealthy hotelier on Twitter.

The 38-year-old’s death remains a mystery as police have been unable to give details until a post mortem examination is complete

The burned wreckage of the Range Rover, believed to be owned by British millionaire Oliver ‘Ollie’ Gobat, was found on a remote pathway in St Lucia with the wealthy hotelier’s body inside

The burnt-out vehicle has now been seized by police as part of the investigation into the death

One of the rooms at Cap Maison – the hotel run by the Gobat family. Rooms cost up to £400 per night

The athlete tweeted this heart-felt message to Mr Gobat’s family

The sportsman has carried out fitness workshops at the family’s luxurious Cap Maison hotel on the island.

He wrote: ‘My love&thoughts go out to friends&family of Ollie Gobat. he was a gem& his family must have been so proud of him. RIP my friend. X’

Unconfirmed reports from St Lucia suggest Mr Gobat’s family lodged a ‘missing person’ report with police after he failed to return home on Friday night.

Athlete Daley Thompson who knew the Gobat family today tweeted: ‘My love&thoughts go out to friends&family of Ollie Gobat. he was a gem& his family must have been so proud of him. RIP my friend. X

The vehicle he owns matches the description of the Range Rover which was discovered with the body inside around 9pm last Friday.

The body of the prominent island businessman, in his late thirties, was said to have been ‘burnt beyond recognition’ and was found in the front passenger seat.

The FCO is working with island authorities to help identify the body after news emerged of the death.

An FCO spokesperson said: ‘We are aware of reports and are looking into them urgently.’

A spokesman for St Lucia police said: ‘We can’t disclose any information at the moment, we are meeting with the family soon.’

Cap Maison, a five-star boutique hotel set in the lush tropical grounds of a former sugar plantation on the northern tip of the island, offers luxury suites.

Guests, which have included Amy Winehouse and Kelly Brook, stay in colonial-style villas and every luxury is on tap, including valets, private chefs, a walk-in wine cellar and spa.

The creators of the hotel were the Gobat family, Theo and Helen and their three sons Rufus, Adam and Oliver.

The dead man’s parents, who live in Esher, Surrey, are understood to have flown out to St Lucia.

Theo Gobat, 74, was born in Chester and trained as an accountant and moved to St Lucia in 1974 as finance director of a hotel and travel company which then went bankrupt.

He and another director successfully took over the company’s hotels and eventually created the small, upmarket Cap Maison.

Oliver was born in St Lucia but had dual nationality. He represented Surrey juniors at cricket and attended Leeds University, before moving to Australia to help launch a health and fitness club in Adelaide, Australia.

Mr Garner’s death comes three after Roger Pratt, 62, was murdered and his wife Margaret, 60, injured when robbers attacked their yacht as it lay moored off the Caribbean island of St Lucia.

The couple, from Warwickshire, had been on a dream voyage around the world on their £200,000 yacht, when they were ambushed at the port of Vieux Fort, at night.

Four men have been charged with Mr Pratt’s murder.

For more on this story go to: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2616195/Pictured-The-burnt-Range-Rover-multi-millionaire-British-hotelier-Oliver-Gobat-38-dead-two-shots-head-tropical-island-St-Lucia.html#ixzz30TIZw0ry

Related story:

Ex-Surrey junior cricketer found dead in burnt-out car on Caribbean island

By Charlotte Talbot From Get Surrey

The body of Oliver Gobat was found by police in a torched Range Rover on Saturday night

Detectives in the Caribbean are investigating the death of a former Surrey junior cricketer, whose body was found inside a burnt-out car on the island of St Lucia.

Oliver Gobat was found dead in the front passenger seat of the torched Range Rover on Saturday night (April 26).

Police made the discovery on the Cap Estate on the north-east tip of the island after locals reported a blaze near his family’s luxury hotel.

Mr Gobat’s worried relatives reportedly raised the alarm after he failed to return home on Friday evening.

His family confirmed on Wednesday that the property developer, who was educated at a British public school, had died.

His parents, Theo and Helen, understood to live in Esher, created the Cap Maison Resort and Spa in St Lucia with their three sons, Rufus, Adam and Oliver.

They said in a statement: “The Gobat family are devastated by the sudden and tragic death of their son and brother Oliver on Friday (April 25) in St Lucia, the island where he was born and which he loved.

“We have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of messages and love but we do need to grieve and we would ask for privacy at this time.

“There will be a celebration of the life of Oliver Gobat held in St Lucia for family and friends this Saturday (May 3) from 5pm and a memorial will be held in the UK in the near future with dates and details to follow.”

British Olympic gold medal-winning athlete Daley Thompson – who had worked with Mr Gobat to promote health and fitness at the hotel – tweeted his condolences, saying: “My love and thoughts go out to friends and family of Ollie Gobat.

“He was a gem and his family must have been so proud of him. RIP my friend.”

A spokesman for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office said: “We are aware of reports and are looking into them urgently.”

A St Lucia Police spokesman added: “We can’t disclose any information at the moment, we are meeting with the family soon.”

It is understood that Mr Gobat played a few games at junior level for Surrey County Cricket Club and also went to King’s College School in Wimbledon.

PHOTO: Oliver Gobat

For more on this story go to: http://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/ex-surrey-junior-cricketer-oliver-gobat-7053301