A man whose life was claimed in a stabbing incident on Thursday at the Southampton Rangers Sports Club has been named by police as 39-year-old Lindley Scott Jr.

Police ordered that the club be closed overnight, which ended at 8am this morning. Mr Scott, known as “LJ”, had marked his birthday last Sunday.

Mr Scott had worked in security as well as coaching young people through the Mirrors Programme and volunteering for the Royal Bermuda Regiment. Tributes from friends were widely shared on social media.

In the aftermath of the tragedy, the club’s president called on the community to address mental illness issues.

Darren “Butch” Burchall also said many people may “jump to conclusions” about the incident, but noted “this was more of a mental health issue, which was just very unfortunate”.

He recounted that he was in a meeting in a room with others discussing plans for an upcoming event while a breast cancer awareness presentation took place in an adjoining room.

Mr Burchall said that while the awareness event was happening, a man walked into the venue and attacked someone.

Several people responded to the situation, the club president added, and among them was Mr Scott, who he said sustained stab wounds when he confronted the attacker.

Mr Burchall added: “One of the guys who was looking after LJ works for the fire department and he did an extremely good job at taking care of him.

“It was just very sad and very unfortunate, because LJ is well known to us at the club and the community. He has been an integral part of our community.”

The club president said he viewed Mr Scott and his siblings “as my nephews”, adding: “His father is like a brother to me, we are best of friends.”

Mr Burchall said the person who instigated the disturbance lives close to the club and was known to be suffering from mental health challenges.

He said: “People always have things to say when something happens at the club, but we have been trying to do our best for the society.

“Mental illness is rampant in our society and there is a lot of people, including young people, who are suffering from it.

“We as a society have to sit down and talk about this and do better for our island and see how we are going to deal with it.”

He said many were sitting around outside the club following the incident, adding that “some people were just there talking about it because it was so sad”.

Darrin Simons, the Commissioner of Police, said: “Mr Scott was a father of four children who had been spending the evening socialising with family and friends when his life was cut short.”

Mr Simons offered “sincere condolences to Mr Scott’s children, his family and friends, during what is undoubtedly an extremely difficult time”.

Police responded shortly before 8pm to reports of a disturbance at the club.

Mr Simons said: “During an altercation, Mr Scott sustained multiple stab wounds. Patrons at the club immediately attempted life-saving measures until emergency services personnel arrived. Sadly, despite their efforts, Mr Scott succumbed to his injuries.”

He added: “I want to acknowledge those individuals who stepped forward to assist Mr Scott. Their efforts, under what must have been extremely distressing circumstances, are sincerely appreciated.

“Shortly after the incident, a 32-year-old man was arrested in connection with Mr Scott’s death.

“A murder investigation is now under way, and a family liaison officer has been appointed to provide support to Mr Scott’s family throughout this process.

“I also want to reassure the public that, based on the information available to investigators at this stage, this incident is not believed to be gang related.

“Our detectives are working diligently to establish the full circumstances surrounding what occurred.

“We are appealing to anyone who was at Southampton Rangers Sports Club last evening, particularly those who may have witnessed the altercation, or the events leading up to it, to come forward.

“If you have information and have not yet spoken with police, please contact Detective Chief Inspector Derricka Burns on 247-1062, or by e-mail at dburns@bps.bm.”