WE NEED ANSWERS

Three months after their son was shot and killed at a friend’s house, shattered parents Julie and Tim still don’t know exactly what happened that day

- CYRIL BLACKBURN

IT’S a tragedy that’s torn two families apart. Two school friends are behind a closed bedroom door. A shot rings out and one boy is left lying bloody and lifeless on the floor while the other is too traumatised to speak.

Three months after their son’s death, Tim and Julie Edwards are still grappling to come to terms with what happened on the afternoon of 5 January.

Julie had dropped their son, Joshua (17), at his friend’s house in Centurion that day. Two hours later, she got the news no parent should ever hear. Her child was dead.

Now the family is desperately trying to get answers to their many questions. Why was a loaded shotgun in a boy’s room? Why was it pointed at Josh? Why was the trigger pulled?

“We wish we knew,” Tim says.

While the police investigation continues, everything points to a tragic accident. Josh was declared dead on the scene. The gun was allegedly owned by his friend’s father.

But what the Edwards couple need for their peace of mind is to find out exactly what happened.

“We can’t even cry in peace for our son,” Julie tells YOU. “We’re not just mourning, we’re furious.”

They’ve been waiting for the final police report on their son’s death but Tim and Julie believe the police are dragging their feet and have hired private forensic investigator Paul O’Sullivan to help them look for answers.

“Josh’s life ended in that house,” Julie says. “How difficult can it be to solve this?”

Josh’s parents want closure so they can mourn their only son. His death has hit his two sisters hard, particularly Josh’s twin, Tim says.