Homicide case of Simone Reid full of unanswered questions

The mother of a teenage girl slain in Toronto is struggling to cope with the tragedy from miles away, while mystery still swirls around the case.

Simone "Shanni" Reid, 18, was killed on Nov. 13 in a Scarborough apartment. Toronto police haven't released the cause of death but are treating it as a homicide.

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"I break down this morning because Wednesday coming would be her birthday,"Reid's mother, Karlene Palmer said from her home in Clarendon, Jamaica.

"It's so painful it hurts so much," Palmer said.

Adding to the family's pain are a series of unanswered questions about the case. Police have yet to name a suspect and they're also searching for Reid's father, Winston Paul Reid, who has been missing since his daughter's death.

Police say Winston Reid, 49, isn't a suspect but they do need to speak with him.

Whoston Wray, a family friend who has organized an online fundraiser to send Simone Reid's body back to Jamaica, said many people who knew the young girl here are struggling as well.

"Everybody wants to know what happened to her, who is the perpetrator behind this heinous crime," Wray said.

The "unanswered questions," especially those floating around Winston Reid are especially troubling.

"It is a concern obviously for his safety," Wray said.

Toronto police are still appealing to anyone with information to come forward or contact Crime Stoppers anonymously.