'A kind, loving, caring individual' Father remembers son beaten on Toronto street
Julian Jones was visiting Toronto for a celebration — a bachelor party. Then, outside a downtown bar, the 26-year-old man was beaten. He was pronounced dead on the way to the hospital.
During a news conference on Thursday, Toronto Police confirmed that two men had been charged with second-degree murder. Police say they're still looking for one suspect.
Tobias Jones is Julian Jones' father. He spoke with As it Happens host Carol Off from Maryland about how he's remembering his son.
CAROL OFF: I understand your son was engaged to be married . . .
TOBIAS JONES: My son was engaged to be married on April 30, 2017. I'm sure they would have wanted to plan a bachelor party somewhere else — maybe even [Toronto] again — if this had not occurred.
I always told him that he's a great son, he's a great brother and he's a great friend.- Tobias Jones, father of Julian Jones
CO: Can you tell us a bit about your son?
TJ: My son was a kind, loving, caring individual. I work hard to teach these children of mine certain things. But he surpassed them all. He's just a great kid. And I always told him that he's a great son, he's a great brother and he's a great friend.
CO: He was studying environmental studies at the University of Baltimore. But I understand that you got to hang out with him quite a bit.
Julian would also show up at my place of work. He would just stop by and say, 'Hey dad, what are you doing?' I will truly miss those little surprises.- Tobias Jones
TJ: Absolutely. When Julian moved out, he didn't go far away. And he wouldn't stay very far away from me. He would come over on Tuesdays or Wednesdays — just to pop in and hang out with me. My younger son is away. He lives in Indiana. He's a chef. My daughter is a college student. She's in school 150 miles away. Julian would come over, hang out with me, have a bite to eat. On Sundays, he would call me. He would say, "What are you doing on Sunday? I want to come over." He would come. We would eat. We would take a nap like we used to do when they were very young. Julian would also, on several occasions, show up at my place of work. They'd say, "Your son is at the front desk." He would just stop by and say, "Hey dad, what are you doing?" I will truly miss those little surprises.
CO: I understand you've had other tragedies in recent years in your family.
TJ: Julian's mother was killed in a motorcycle accident . . . approximately three years ago. We all went through this mourning period. We all went through the grief. Julian was a huge thing in helping his brother with this. He burdened a lot of the grief on his shoulders and that's why his brother became a chef. I helped. But it was Julian's driving force. He'd talk [to his brother] and say, "Do it in the name of our mother."
To hear more of our conversation with Tobias Jones, listen to the full interview above.