Tragic death of Shivan Singh: a family's heartbreak after alleged attempted robbery

ON SUNDAY Shivan Singh would have celebrated his 20th birthday with his family. Instead, they performed his final rites after he was stabbed to death while walking through a park in Phoenix.

Roshan Singh, his father, said Shivan and his 18-year-old girlfriend used the park in Woodview as a shortcut. He said they were going to their homes in Cornubia when they were attacked last Thursday. 

“I received a call from his girlfriend at around 1pm. She said ‘uncle please help’. I asked her what happened. She told me Shivan had been stabbed and was not breathing. She explained that while walking home, two men ran towards them and tried to rob them. One of them pushed her around and Shivan jumped in front of her when he was stabbed. Shivan tried to protect her. I told her to apply pressure to his wounds,” he said.  

Singh said when he arrived at the scene, he saw his son on the ground.

 "My heart sank. I tried to resuscitate him by doing CPR, but it was too late. He was gone. My son was stabbed several times in his face, neck, chest and back. What is most devastating is that he was killed in a robbery but their cellphones were not taken.” 

Singh, a street vendor, said his son was a subsistence fisherman and was waiting to get his Smart ID card, so he could get a job. 

“We hoped it would be ready soon as my wife (stepmother) and I had organised him a job at a plastic factory.”

He said his son, who also used to help him at his stall, was “his everything”. 

“He lived with me in Phoenix for most of his life, and recently went to live with his mother in Cornubia. He messaged me every day and said ‘dad I miss you’. Shivan was respectful and helpful. He also used to tell me, ‘dad I just want to make you proud’. I will now fight for justice for my son, who was robbed of a bright future.”

Constable Thenjiswa Ngcobo, a provincial police spokesperson, said Verulam SAPS were investigating a case of murder and attempted robbery.

Shivan was cremated at Clare Estate Crematorium on Sunday. 

THE POST