A SCOTTISH oil worker who was shot dead in a bungled carjacking in Brazil will be laid to rest today.
Father-of-three Peter Campsie, 48, from Angus, was ambushed as he returned to his home in Macae, three hours north of Rio de Janeiro, last Wednesday.
Mr Campsie, an operations manager for Aberdeen firm Diamond Offshore Drilling International, was shot twice when carjackers tried to steal his car as he returned from a business meeting. It is understood he died at the scene and reports said the gunmen fled empty-handed, although the circumstances around the incident are "still confused", according to Mr Campsie's family.
No arrests have been made.
Mr Campsie was born in Glasgow and grew up in the Ayrshire village of Barr and later Bridge of Allan in Stirling, before moving to Montrose in Angus.
He started out as an apprentice welder at Glaxo in Montrose aged 16, but had worked in Brazil for 16 years and was married to a Brazilian, Janaina. The couple have a 10-year-old daughter, Joy.
Mr Campsie also had two older sons living in Scotland, along with his mother, younger brother and sister.
The family has already flown out to South America to join his wife and daughter and Mr Campsie is due to be laid to rest in his adopted homeland. The funeral service is expected to take place today.
In a statement issued over the weekend, the family said: "He was a man who loved life and brought so much joy and laughter to those around him.
"Wherever Pete went, the good times followed. A darkness has fallen on us all as we try and make sense of why Pete had to die in the prime of his life. He was a loyal friend and father, brother and son who cared deeply about making sure everyone got the best out of their lives. Our anchor has been pulled away so cruelly."
The golf fanatic and friends in Macae had been building a golf course, and it had been given the full go-ahead just days before his death. He was a member of the St Andrew Society in Rio de Janeiro for ex-patriate Scots and also played at Buzios Golf Club.
"It is with great sadness that he will never see the course fully completed," his family said. "It had been hoped it would be used for the Olympics in 2016."
They added: "Pete genuinely touched many, many lives and our hearts break for the loss of this great man."
The Macae Oilmen's Golf Association paid tribute to Mr Campsie in a statement which said: "RIP Pete. We will remember the good time we all have had together over the years. We are praying for Janaina."
Suzan Carter, who runs the membership for the St Andrew Society in Rio de Janeiro, said: "I heard he was found dead on the roadside going back to Macae and they couldn't find his car so it seems like it was a mugging. He was married to a Brazilian, so he knew how things work here. She worked with him.
"He was a great person. I'm actually very shocked at the whole thing. I would be very surprised if he was targeted. He was a very decent person."
The tragedy comes amid an escalation of violence in Rio in recent weeks. It is feared that efforts to drive out drug gangs from tourist areas ahead of the World Cup in June have led many to flee to neighbouring areas like Niteroi, where the lethal robbery took place.
The "pacification" programme of Rio's notorious slums, or favelas, began more than five years ago.
However, there are concerns that types of crime other than drugs, such as muggings and carjackings, have increased as the gangs are displaced.
A spokeswoman for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office said: "We were made aware of the death of a British national in Brazil on April 2.
"We stand ready to provide consular assistance to the family at this difficult time."
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