Brother of murdered chef in appeal to catch 'cruel' killer

14 March 2019, 13:34 | Updated: 14 March 2019, 13:37

The brother of a chef who died after he was hit by a stolen car have appealed for information to help catch his killer.

Lionel Simenya, 36, died following an incident on Ford's Road in the west of Edinburgh at around 3.50am on Thursday March 7.

He was struck by a Peugeot 207 which had been stolen nearby and was abandoned at the scene.

A week after the incident, Mr Simenya's brother Nicolas appealed for information.

He said: "Lionel was a wonderful, protective big brother and appreciated by all those who crossed his path in Burundi where he was born, in Belgium, his adopted country, and in Scotland, where he spent his final years.

"Lionel worked hard and never asked for help from anyone.

"Lionel was in his prime and would have been 37 yesterday, had he not been taken away from us."

Police are treating the death as murder.

Mr Simenya said in the short time that his brother had lived in Edinburgh, he had won an award as a chef.

He added: "Yesterday, we visited his body at the mortuary, he looked so peaceful. The same way he lived his life.

"Lionel did not deserve to die such an atrocious death. He should be living his life to the fullest, instead of having been cruelly taken away from us.

"As his family, we urge anyone with information to come forward and contact the police so that we can start grieving."

Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101, quoting reference 0332 of March 7, or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 where anonymity can be maintained.