SURINAME-Businessman shot dead in drive-by shooting.

PARAMARIBO, Suriname, CMC – Law enforcement authorities say that an employee of the Directorate of National Security (DNV), in connection with the murder of businessman Karan Chablani, who was killed last weekend in a drive-by shooting, has since surrendered himself to police.

The DNV is the agency responsible for safeguarding national security and serves as Suriname’s leading intelligence service.

The authorities said that the 43-year-old entrepreneur, the owner of, among other things, a modern shopping mall in northern Paramaribo, was killed in Emielaan in Uitvlugt.

According to preliminary police investigations, Chablani was visiting relatives and had just stepped out of his car when another vehicle stopped next to him. Multiple shots were fired from inside the car. Witnesses said that at least four shots were fired and that the vehicle fled the scene at high speed.

Family members rushed the victim to the Emergency Department of the Academic Hospital Paramaribo (AZP), but he was pronounced dead.

The police and the Anonymous Information Hotline (MIA) had since issued a wanted notice for the DNV member, saying he is “suspected of having committed a drive-by shooting on Emielaan in Paramaribo”.

The suspect, identified as Antony Loswijk, has since turned himself in to the police, accompanied by his lawyer. Police said that three brothers have also been taken into custody as part of the investigation.

At the time of his death, the businessman was a suspect in an ongoing money laundering case that is still pending before the magistrate’s court. A judicial source told the newspaper de Ware Tijd that it is still too early to conclude the motive.

“It’s far too soon to make any statements. It could be related to the criminal case, but it’s also possible that the motive lies elsewhere. Several scenarios are being considered,” the source said.

Police said that they have since seized the suspected getaway car, which was found abandoned near a cemetery. They noted that the vehicle had been rented from a car rental company in Paramaribo and was likely fitted with false license plates.