Car restorer killed in suspected hit had CCTV - Best friend hopes shooter will be identified on camera

"He looked like a rough oke but he was just a big teddy bear. A real softy."

That’s how the Raymond "Razor" Barras was described on Wednesday by his best friend‚ Paul Gibson‚ just hours after he was shot dead outside his Kensington home in Johannesburg.

Raymond ‘Razor’ Barras - shot and killed in an apparent hit in Kensington this morning. pic.twitter.com/NmCMbMzmAj

— Mandy Wiener (@MandyWiener) February 15, 2017

Barras‚ suspected of having had links to Johannesburg's underworld‚ was shot four times in the back of the head and once in the chest.

Barras first started out a long term insurance broker before he turned to debt collecting and bodybuilding‚ which is where he is alleged to have made his name.

• 'Razor got whacked' - Car restorer with links to underworld killed in JohannesburgRaymond "Razor" Barras‚ described as a muscle man with links to the underworld‚ was shot dead outside his Kensington home in Johannesburg this morning. 

Police spokesman‚ Colonel Lungelo Dlamini‚ who confirmed the murder‚ said Barras was shot dead as he reversed his car from his garage.

"The motive is unknown. Nothing was taken from him‚" he said.

News of his death - which is suspected to be an assassination - has sent shockwaves through the country's criminal network‚ with many speculating whether it is linked to a power grab.

A source with intimate knowledge of Johannesburg's underworld said: "With [Radovan] Krejcir out of the way‚ there is a leadership space and vacuum. People are looking at filling that vacuum and things are getting ugly."

• Car restorer shot in Johannesburg: reportsCar restorer Raymond 'Razor' Barras is believed to have been shot dead in Johannesburg this morning. 

Another source said that Barras had several fallouts with his business partners in South Africa's muscle car industry.

"He and several others were involved in the restoration of US muscle cars from the 1950s‚ '60s and '70s. He had numerous fights with people of late.

"Everyone in this game has enemies. Razor's just decided to act and he got whacked."

Gibson‚ who described his friend's death as shocking‚ said like everyone‚ Barras had a few enemies.

"He had told me he was worried about something‚ but I can't talk about it."

He said Barras was his best friend.

"We are family friends. We have know each other for 35 years. We were close‚ very close."

Gibson said it seemed as though Barras had known his killer.

"He was on his way to see me.

"He had stopped his car outside his garage. It was in park mode. From what I have heard from the crime scene‚ someone came up to his car. Raymond must have known them because he had opened his window and that was when he was shot.

"I've heard there are CCTV cameras are around. I just hope the police get the footage and get the people who did this."

Gibson described Barras as a "really good guy".

"There are claims that he was into drugs‚ but that is far from the truth. He never did those things.

"He looked like a rough oke‚ but he was just a big teddy bear. A real softy. So many people loved him."

- TMG Digital/TimesLIVE