Ongoing dispute led to Mario Rodgers murder in east Hamilton parking lot

Hamilton police say an ongoing argument between young men who lived in neighbouring apartment buildings culminated in the city's latest homicide where 22-year-old Mario Rodgers was intentionally run over with a car.

Det. Sgt. Steve Bereziuk, of the major crime unit, would not get into details about what the animosity was about. However, he noted Rodgers and his alleged killer knew each other well and there were a number of issues that led up to the homicide.

There was certainly an argument," Bereziuk said, adding that the dispute was ongoing for hours before the fatal encounter in the parking lot outside the apartment building at 2520 Barton St. E. around 4 a.m. on Dec. 13.

Junaid Mohamed Nizami, 24, is charged with second-degree murder.

Nizami lived in the Barton Street building and Rodgers lived in the apartment directly south of there at 45 Barlake Ave. The two buildings are connected by a U-shaped parking lot. However, the Barlake side of the lot was being repaved and was a construction zone the night of the homicide, Bereziuk said. Police believe people from the Barlake building were parking on the Barton side. The construction also meant there was only one way in or out of the parking lot.

Nizami was alone and Rodgers had some people with him when they met in the parking lot. Bereziuk would not say whether they met incidentally, whether it was planned or whether one side went looking for the other.

During the dispute, police allege the accused intentionally hit Rodgers with his car, a 2006 BMW he was known to drive.

Afterwards, Nizami was pulled from the vehicle and assaulted by bystanders, Bereziuk said. His injuries were not serious, but he was taken to hospital briefly for treatment. No one has been charged with assaulting him.

Police towed four vehicles from the scene for examination as part of their investigation, but say no one else was struck with a vehicle.

There have been many comments about the case on social media, including a vast outpouring of support for Rodgers' family. Rodgers leaves behind a large family, including his parents, six siblings (one of his sisters predeceased him) and a girlfriend.

Rodgers had a passion for cars and was known for fixing up Honda Civics. Family and friends have set up a GoFundMe, Fundraiser for our Beloved brother Mario Rodgers, to raise money for expenses.

Mario was so loved, so well respected in the car community, an amazing son, an amazing brother, an amazing uncle, and overall an amazing person," it reads.

He was a heartfelt kid," longtime friend Lucas Camara told The Spectator after his friend's murder. He didn't care about anything besides putting a smile on people's faces."

Other comments on social media have been details about the ongoing issue between the men, including that it had to do with another person, who is considered a witness in the case.

Bereziuk urged anyone with information to come forward to police.

Initially, some witnesses were reluctant to come forward, he said. But detectives have made good headway" since.

He also said police have not found any record of police being called previously about problems between the two. There were no police calls that night until the 4 a.m. homicide.

Rodgers died at the scene from catastrophic" injuries.

This marks the 18th homicide for Hamilton this year, a record-high for the city.

Anyone with information is asked to call Det. Robert Di Ianni at 905-546-3836. To remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or crimestoppershamilton.com.

Nicole O'Reilly is a crime and justice reporter at The Spectator. noreilly@thespec.com