In 2006, Three Tight-Knit Toronto Teens Vanished After A Fellow Friend Was Found Murdered 5 Days Prior: Neither The Disappearances Nor The Murder Has Ever Been Solved
On August 14, 2006, three tight-knit Toronto teenagers with no money or vehicle seemingly vanished into thin air just days after a fellow friend was found dead.
Yee Wah “Eva” Ho, Jacki Li, and Kevin Lim were all seventeen-years-old and a part of the same friend group at the time of their disappearance.
In fact, just five days prior, one of the teens’ friends– seventeen-year-old Phillip Ho Sing Sit– was found murdered in a rural area of King Township after being missing for nearly a year.
According to Detective Shona Patterson of the Toronto Homicide and Missing Persons Unit, some uncharacteristic behavior really started the day before Eva, Jacki, and Kevin went missing– on August 13, 2006.
That Sunday, Eva had plans to meet her best friend at the Eaton Center– a shopping mall– in downtown Toronto. But she never showed up.
“Which was completely unlike her. Normally she would have [made] some contact; she was a very social young girl, always in contact with her friends. But she just didn’t show up,” Patterson said.
Then, the next day– Monday, August 14– Eva reportedly left her home address at about 7:30 p.m. She was never seen again.
It was revealed that Eva and Jacki were romantically involved. The couple met while attending high school together at George Harvey Collegiate Institute and had been dating for two years.
Kevin also happened to be Jacki’s best friend. So, the three teens hung out all the time and were “attached at the hip,” according to Patterson.
Javen – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only
Interestingly, though, Kevin– who lived in Scarborough very close to Jacki– had asked for money shortly before his disappearance.
More specifically, Kevin asked his grandmother for cash and claimed that he was heading out to the store to buy a drink. It is not known just how much money was given to Kevin at the time, though.
Jacki, on the other hand, did have “a little bit” of money in his bank account, per the Toronto Police Service.
“But the theory behind that [Kevin asking for money] could very well be tied to one of their friends who had gone missing prior,” Patterson explained.
That friend was Phillip Ho Sing Sit, whose body was finally located just five days before the three teens vanished. Bizarrely, though, Phillip’s murder has never been solved, and even his cause of death has never been released to the public.
“It could have very well been that they [Eva, Kevin, and Jacki] knew something about Phillip’s murder. Were they worried about retribution? Were they worried about fleeing from the same person that Phillip might have had to flee from?” Patterson said.
In the Toronto Homicide and Missing Persons Unit, some details regarding the circumstances surrounding Phillip’s death have been released. Particularly, Patterson detailed how her unit believed there might have been some gang activity.
Additionally, she speculates that the three teens might have had some affiliates who were gang members.
“The four of them were actually very close friends at the time of this disappearance,” Patterson said.
It has now been going on eighteen years since the three teens went missing, and there has never been a confirmed sighting of Eva, Jacki, or Kevin. In fact, according to Patterson, there have been zero tips, either.
“Shockingly, there has not been one tip that the Toronto Police have received based on any of this coverage [of the case],” she said.
Two of the teens did have cell phones at the time of their disappearance, but Toronto authorities have not been able to trace any digital footprint, either.
Toronto Crime Stoppers spoke with Eva’s father, who issued a heartfelt plea to his daughter.
“Eva, if you see this, we are daddy and mommy. We are worried about you. Please call home and come back home, please. If you need any help, call me and come back and let me know. We will help you; we love you,” her father said.
As for the circumstances surrounding the teens’ disappearance, Patterson does not want to rule out any possibilities.
More specifically, authorities are largely unsure whether the teens felt inclined to flee due to Phillip’s murder or if they fell victim to foul play themselves.
“But I do want to stress that they are not suspects in Phillip’s murder,” Patterson underscored.
The community can get involved in the search for Eva, Jacki, and Kevin– which remains ongoing. Anyone with information regarding their whereabouts, whether that was sixteen years ago or more recently, is urged to contact the Toronto Homicide and Missing Persons Unit.
“This is the only way that closure comes to any of these investigations–people stepping up and doing what’s right. Someone out there knows what happened to these individuals, someone out there knows what happened to Phillip, and it’s important that the public step up.”
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