‘Oh God no’: Neighbours, building staff react with horror after death of young brothers in Scarborough

Residents and staff at a Scarborough apartment building reacted with shock on Monday after learning that two young brothers who filled their hallways with laughter had died in an incident now being probed as a possible double homicide.

Neighbours identified the boys to CityNews as Yiani and Mimi and their mother as Vanessa Collias (pictured below with her husband).

Those who knew the family also revealed that their father, Costa, otherwise known as “Gus,” passed away from cancer just a few weeks ago.

The boys’ mother remains in hospital with serious injuries after falling from her apartment balcony on Sunday night. The two boys, aged four and five, were found unconscious and confirmed dead on Monday.

Investigators say the boys were without vital signs when they were discovered, but had no visible signs of trauma on their bodies.

The assistant superintendent at the building said he frequently saw the boys playing in the hallways and around the complex.

“Every day I see them,” he said. “The kids are just amazingly adorable.”

“I’m really somewhat confused about what happened here,” he added. “I always stop and wave at them; you can’t ignore these kids. They are adorable. It really breaks my heart.”

While he said he didn’t know the mother personally, he said she was polite and quiet.

“She’s very private,” he said. “If you smile at her, she smiles back. She’s a pleasant person.”

Emergency crews were called to the building on Glamorgan Avenue near Kennedy and Ellesmere roads just after 7:30 p.m. Sunday.

The emergency response startled neighbour Steve Rafferty, who rushed to his balcony to see what was going on.

When he looked down, he saw the body of a woman.

“I looked down and saw somebody down on the ground and thought that looks like our neighbour, but I wasn’t sure,” he explained.

“Then I heard them doing CPR on the little boys inside.”

Rafferty says he didn’t know the mother well but became friendly with the father after they bonded over their mutual interest in sports cars.

Rafferty also said that the father, whom he called Gus, passed away recently.

“The kids were always “hi, hi, hi,” because they knew I was friends with the father,” he said.

“We heard on the news two children (died) and thought ‘Oh God no.’ “

He remembers the boys running up and down the hall “full of energy.”

“It’s very sad especially this time of year.”

Another neighbour who was visibly shaken briefly spoke to CityNews, also saying she recently saw the mother who relayed the news of her husband’s death.

“She knocked on my door, and she said, ‘he’s gone,’ ” she recalled.

She described the two boys as “super cute.”

“My God,” she gasped.

Investigators say autopsies will take place before Wednesday.

“Given the circumstances and nature of this investigation, the Homicide and Missing Persons Unit has taken the lead,” Toronto police Insp. Terry Browne said.