Ryan Winter, 44, an Arouca father of two, became the first murder victim for 2017 when a gunman entered his home at Thomas Street at 3.30 am and shot him twice in the chest and two times to the head. He died at the scene.
Winter's brother, Jason, said the family is shocked at his killing: "Ryan was a normal and quiet person who never interfered with nobody.
"He was not the confrontational type of person so I don't know why they would want to kill him."
He added that his brother sold clothes for a living and was looking forward to completing a store at his home.
"What a bad way to start off the New Year.
"Just today we all planned to go up by a friend in Valencia to cook and lime," Jason said.
Winter's pet dog, Fluffy, was seen running in and out of the yard as though looking for him.
In fact, a close friend of the victim said the police officers had a difficult time in getting Fluffy away from Winter's body.
"She was growling at the police and wouldn't let them get close to the body.
"Even when they eventually put the body in the hearse and it drove away Fluffy ran behind it and since then she has been running up and down the road looking for Ryan," the friend said.
Investigations are continuing.