The parents of a 19-year-old boy who was killed at Scarborough Town Centre last week only had a few words for the two teenagers who have been charged with murder in their son’s death.
“My son, I know he is with God. But I am sorry to these two boys. My heart is sorry to them because they are also young people,” Judin Basil, the mother of Daniel Amalathas, said on Friday.
“They have a life. But God knows everything. He is our judge, and he will bring the judgment. I don’t want to say any comment to them.”
Judin and her husband, Mariyathasan Amalathas, spoke with CTV News Toronto hours after Toronto police announced the second-degree murder charges against the two 17-year-old male suspects, who cannot be named under the terms of the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
Daniel was found in a washroom at the Scarborough shopping mall on the afternoon of Aug. 21 and pronounced deceased. He is the city’s 27th homicide victim of the year.
Police initially described Daniel’s death as “suspicious” before the homicide squad was called in to investigate. Police have not said what may have motivated the shooting.
Daniel died more than a month before his 20th birthday.
His parents described him as a sweet, kind, and lovable person who loved going to the gym, taking taekwondo, and playing basketball. Daniel was a second-year auto mechanical engineering student at Ontario Tech University. He also worked part-time at Costco.
“He was a hard worker,” Judin said. “He was so good to our life.”
She added that Daniel was devoted to his Christian faith, going to church every Sunday.
Judin recounted that she and her husband were shopping across from the mall at the time of the shooting and saw paramedics.
“We didn’t know it was our son,” she said.
Later, when they got home, one of their daughters asked them to call Daniel after seeing the news about the shooting.
“I called, he didn’t answer,” Judin said. “I texted him, ‘Where are you, Daniel? Are you okay?’”
She didn’t worry as she said Daniel usually goes to the mall on his days off and then goes to the gym or plays basketball.
“Scarborough Centre is a big area. Maybe he’s going to a movie or something, I thought. Then I make some dinner for him,” Judin said.
But Daniel never came home. Instead, it was police officers who arrived later at their doorstep to inform them about what happened to their son.
Judin said her son never mentioned anything about being in any kind of trouble.
“I know mostly his close friends, and he never says anything,” she said.
The past week has been hard for the family.
“I don’t sleep almost seven days. I can’t sleep,” Judin said as she and her husband broke down in tears.
Judin and her husband moved to Canada in 1993 from Sri Lanka to escape the war. While she is thankful that Canada has given her family great opportunities, Judin said the death of her son has “hurt me.”
“We thought Canada was safe, (that) our children are safe here,” she said.
The family is now planning a vigil and funeral for Daniel. A GoFundMe has been created to help with those expenses.
With files from CTV News Toronto’s Beth Macdonell
