A witness told on Tuesday of heart-wrenching scenes as kwaito star Lebo Mathosa lay dying on the tarmac of a freeway, with paramedics battling to save her.
Lebo's last moments were revealed as a Germiston Metro Police spokesperson said on Tuesday that the young driver of the death car had seemed shattered - but he had seen no evidence that the 20-year-old had been drinking or taking drugs.
On Tuesday a resident in the area, who did not wish to be named, said locals had been woken by a sound like the roof of a house being ripped off.
Rushing outside, they saw Lebo lying metres from her shattered luxury 4x4, clad in tracksuit pants and a bikini top. Her sandals were lying some distance away.
The witness said he could not see a mark on her body.
"I didn't expect her to die; I didn't realise her injuries were that serious. There was just a little blood on her face.
"I went up to her and asked her if she was all right. She groaned," he said.
The driver had climbed out of the vehicle, seemingly dazed by the impact. He ran up the highway, then back to the car.
He knelt down next to Lebo and began speaking to her. She groaned a couple of times and he shouted: "Lebo, help! Lebo, help!"
When he realised the paramedics now at the scene could not save her, the driver started weeping, according to the witness.
The paramedics gave up after battling to revive her for 15 minutes. She was declared dead at 1.05am.
She apparently suffered "massive injuries" to her neck and upper body, according to a spokesperson for the paramedics.
It is believed that the pair were not wearing seatbelts.
On the phone on Monday, fear and anxiety were evident in the tremulous voice of the young driver.
"I'm sorry, I can't talk about what happened. I'm not allowed to speak to anybody," he said softly.
Police had not yet told him when he is expected to appear in court.
The Ekurhuleni Metro Police registered a case of culpable homicide with the SAPS after the accident.
Metro Police spokesperson Kobeli Mokheseng was one of the first officers on the scene on the N3 in Germiston, just after midnight on Sunday.
He said the driver had struck him as a "respectable person, not the type to try to run away from the police".
"When people have been drinking and driving and are involved in a crash, there are telltale signs. They get out of a vehicle and hold on to something for support.
"They smell of liquor and it is evident from their speech that they have been drinking. This young man did not qualify for a blood-alcohol test.
"I was close to him and there was nothing to raise any suspicion of drugs or alcohol," Mokheseng said.
"But I could see that he was deeply shocked by the terrible accident."
Alberton police, in whose magisterial district the crash took place, are continuing their investigation and have not brought charges so far.
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