Second murder in 10 days has residents demanding action

Sat, April 26, 2008
Murder building tenants 'fed up'
By CHRIS DOUCETTE, SUN MEDIA

Some residents of a troubled apartment building in Scarborough where the city's latest murder victim was slain may regard "snitching" as a bad thing, but it seems others refuse to keep living in fear.

A group called the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now says its members who live at 25 Cougar Court -- the murder scene, and at 15 Cougar Court and 3400 Eglinton Ave. E., plan to deliver a list of demands to their property managers on Monday that includes improved security, maintenance and pest control, among other things.

FRUSTRATED

"Our members who live in these buildings are fed up and frustrated," Tatiana Jaunzems, community organizer for ACORN, said yesterday.

Residents feel the companies that manage their building don't care about their safety, she said.



The tenants are hoping to have more surveillance cameras installed and they would like to see something done to deter the drug dealers and users from loitering in their stairwells and lobbies, Jaunzems said.

People are also angry that it takes so long to get work done when they have a problem in their unit.

"The situation here is ridiculous," ACORN member Robert Strutt said. "I think it's time the Province of Ontario gets involved with cleaning up these buildings."

STABBING DEATH

Meanwhile, an autopsy confirmed yesterday that the city's latest murder victim was stabbed to death.

Ricardo Erik Kelly suffered fatal stab wounds during a fight just after midnight in the hallway outside his 20th-floor apartment in the Markham Rd. and Eglinton Ave. E. area.

Detectives are examining two knives found at the rear of the highrise for fingerprints and DNA.