Teacher decries gun violence
Teen killed last week in Etobicoke shooting identified as young musician Aseel Yehya
In an interview with Global News last week, Saleh Ali, a man identifying himself as Yehya’s father, said his son had gone out that night to give a friend a T-shirt, and was waiting for a bus when shots rang out.
“He’s a good boy. He’s a young boy. He’s a educated boy. He’s a working boy at the airport. I was very shocked,” Ali told Global News.
“Never ever seen anything like this happen in all my life. It’s not easy.”
Aheartbroken Murray took to Twitter on the weekend, posting several photos of Yehya and calling for an end to gun violence in Toronto.
Murray said Yehya was the third student under the age of 18 he has known who lost their life to gun violence in the last nine years.
“I just want people to know that he was a good kid,” said Murray.
“A nice kid with a whole future ahead of him.”
Ross Murray says he will remember his former student Aseel Yehya as a promising, talented musician who was wellliked by his peers.
On Sunday Yehya,18, was identified by Toronto police as the city’s third homicide victim of 2019.
Known by the nickname “Twix,” Yehya was a “nice kid” who was developing a reputation as a gifted singer and writer of rap lyrics, Murray said. “He definitely had potential there.” Murray, now a vice-principal at Lakeshore Collegiate Institute, said he met Yehya when the teen became one of his students in the TDSB School Within A College (SWAC) program at Humber College last year.
The program provides “disengaged and underachieving” students between 17 and 20 the opportunity to earn high school and college credits on a college campus, according to the TDSB website.
“Everyone loved him in the class,” said Murray, who taught Yehya from February to June 2018 at Humber College’s north campus.
“He was always laughing, always smiling. I mean, he could have been a little more focused with his school work, but … he was always so respectful, polite. He liked to have a good time, got along with everyone.”
Murray said he was in “disbelief and shock” when he learned of Yehya’s death from another student, Frida.
“I was wondering, what happened and why someone would do this? Was it targeted?” Murray said.
According to police, Yehya was walking on Elmhurst Dr. near Redwater Dr. in Etobicoke around 9:20 p.m. on Wednesday when he was approached by a dark-coloured vehicle. Gunshots were heard. Yehya attempted to run away, but was shot. The vehicle drove off.
Police said bystanders provided medical assistance to the teen as he lay on the ground before he was taken to hospital suffering from “severe trauma.” He died a short time later.