More than 600 people attended Rean Ramdin’s funeral at St Joseph’s Catholic Church in Actonville, Benoni, on Thursday.
The 29-year-old man was shot and killed, allegedly by a flying squad member, while handcuffed early on Sunday morning.
He had allegedly escaped from police custody.
His father Royheed, 61, could not contain his emotions during the funeral proceedings.
He smiled while watching a PowerPoint presentation with pictures of his son playing with their dog Zoe. He wept when the priest lit a candle in the dead man’s honour.
He cried when asked to place a white cloth over his son’s coffin, and he bawled when the lid was opened to reveal a lifeless, pale face.
Speeches were delivered by teary-eyed friends and family, including childhood friend Yogen Vengatass, who flew to SA for the funeral from Amsterdam.
“He was the proverbial chick magnet,” said Vengatass. “He was like a brother to me, but it didn’t stop him dating most of my cousins.”
But not all the speeches were light-hearted.
“With a very heavy heart, I stand here. This family has experienced a great loss,” said his aunt Sheila, before breaking into tears.
Rean was the youngest of three siblings, and the only boy in the family.
The audience was sprinkled with yellow and black T-shirts by employees of a local courier company where Rean had worked.
At the bottom of the obituary was one of Rean’s favourite catchphrases: “Check you later”. - The Star