Tamsin Derix seeks justice for brother Kade Hall who was murdered in 2002

THE anguish of losing her brother more than a decade ago is still raw, but Tamsin Derix has never given up hope of bringing his killer to justice.

Tasmin Derix

THE anguish of losing her brother more than a decade ago is still raw, but Yarra Ranges' Tamsin Derix has never given up hope of bringing his killer to justice.

Kade Hall, 24, of Croydon, met a lonely and violent death in the hills. His body was found on March 15, 2002, in Kalorama, dumped on the side of Mt Dandenong Tourist Rd.

He was last seen on February 28 that year.

He had been shot in the head, and his body was so badly decomposed that his sister had to provide a DNA sample so police could identify him.

Now Mrs Derix, 37, is urging old associates and friends of Kade's to come forward, in the wake of a recent series of cold case files run by Leader and the Herald Sun - also featuring her brother's death.

Mrs Derix last spoke to the media in 2009 when police offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Kade's killer.

The mother-of-three children aged five and under, said she and Kade had a "horrific" childhood.

Mrs Derix said their parents were alcoholics who physically and emotionally abused them.

"Kade and I were really close because we were forced to be and had to survive," Mrs Derix said.

"We dreamed of having parents like the ones you see on television."

Mrs Derix said she and Kade spend several happy years in their teens with a family in Croydon but she said after Kade's death she became estranged from them.

Mrs Derix left the home when she was 18, but said Kade lived there on and off until his death.

However she said her brother had struggled with drug use.

Mrs Derix said it disturbed her that his killer had not yet faced justice.

"The fact that the people who murdered Kade are still walking around should be a concern for the community too," Mrs Derix said.

In the weeks before his death, Mrs Derix said she was helping Kade, a qualified landscape gardener, to make flyers so that he could start a gardening business.

"Kade was so close to getting his life on track and that breaks my heart," she said. "He was my baby brother and he didn't deserve to die."

She sent this text to Leader: "Thank you for showing interest in my little brother. He doesn't have many supporters."