It has been 12 years since Prince Benard Appiah played soccer or video games with his brother. Twelve years since they listened to music or laughed together.
Appiah’s younger brother, Junior William Appiah, was shot and killed at age 18 in broad daylight on Sept. 16, 2008 at a popular outdoor basketball court in Toronto’s Jane and Finch community. His killers have not been found.
“I miss the bond that we had, the jokes, just growing up and hanging out, discussing music,” said Appiah, now 32.
“He loved to make people laugh. Everywhere I go, people tell me he was making everybody laugh. He was very funny and very kind as well. He always cared for people. He would go high and low for them.”
Despite how long his brother has been gone, Appiah, who is two years older, said he’ll never stop sharing his story, and never stop hoping that his killers will be found.
The shooting happened just after 5 p.m. at the court at the foot of the building. The killers, three of them, were captured on security cameras, and one of them didn’t even cover up.
“I was certain they would be able to identify this person,” Appiah said.
There were also witnesses in the area and Appiah assumes his brother wasn’t alone on the court either.
“Obviously someone out there knows,” he said. “But, at the time, they just go by this rule that there’s no snitching in Jane and Finch.”
Appiah remembers the day the shooting happened well. He’s the eldest of four children, Junior was second oldest, and they have two younger sisters. The family grew up in Jane and Finch, living with their mom. Less than a year before their brother’s death, the family had moved to Brampton, but the kids had their social lives in the neighbourhood so they were often in the Jane and Finch area.
Appiah had just finished a job interview with a security company in Scarborough. He got the job and was on his way out of the building, to hop on a bus to take him back to Jane and Finch. Then his cell phone rang.
“It was a friend of mine and he was telling me he heard rumours that Junior might have got shot. Hearing that, everything just stopped.”
He didn’t want to believe it. His friend said he would call back when he knew more and so Appiah boarded the bus.
Brothers Prince Appiah, left, and Junior have their photo taken around Christmas time years ago. – Appiah family photo
“Then maybe five or 10 minutes later, my phone started blowing up. A lot of people started messaging me, calling me,” he said. “At this point, I’m nervous and shaken up.”
He called his mom to tell her what he heard.
“She didn’t want to believe it, she was saying that’s not true, don’t talk like that.”
Appiah didn’t go back to Jane and Finch. He went to a friend’s house and watched the news. There were a number of shootings around the GTA that day and then the station named his brother and posted his yearbook photo on the TV screen. He and his mom later that night identified their brother’s body.
Appiah said the first five years were tough for his family. His mom wouldn’t go into Junior’s room and only finally packed up his possessions when they moved homes.
“I think she still holds onto his stuff, to this day,” he said.
Junior William Appiah was shot and killed at the basketball court at 4400 Jane street in 2008. – Dan Pearce/Torstar
Appiah said the family received a lot of love and support from their friends, that’s what helped them get through this.
Most were surprised that this would happen to Junior. Appiah doesn’t think his brother was involved in gangs, but may have been killed because he was hanging out with the wrong crowd, and Junior’s killing may have been to send a message.
By sharing his brother’s story, Appiah hopes someone out there who knows something will speak up. He even made a 36-minute documentary under his artist name, Prince Young, to mark the 10th anniversary of his brother’s death with the hope it might spark something.
“We’re living now, but it’s so hard to know that someone kills your sibling and you don’t know who it is,” he said. “Is the killer still out there? They’re still out there, they’re in jail, or they’re dead. Who knows?”
He added he wouldn’t be surprised if someone either he or his brother knew knows something about the killing.
Brothers Junior Appiah, left, and Prince hang out on the hood of a car. – Appiah family photo
Toronto police last received a tip in Junior’s murder about four years ago, said Det. Const. Jeff Weatherbee, of the cold case unit.
He added police are always looking for leads.
“We always believe someone knows what happened,” he said. “Call Crime Stoppers, give us a name, help us out. We’ll go on any lead. Any tip is, even if it’s small, it may be small to someone, but it could be the last thing that we need to solve a case.”
He said an unsolved case, no matter how old, is never closed. New advances in technology allow police to relook at evidence in a new light.
Even when a case seems hopeless, there is still hope, Weatherbee said. The proved that. Toronto police were able to identify her killer 36 years after the young girl was raped and murdered.
“We never give up. Some cases take longer than others.”
If you have any information regarding Junior’s case, contact the homicide unit at 416-808-7400 or at , or anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 416−222−TIPS (8477) or at .
