Hunt For Man Who Killed Teen For Phone

An identity of the man wanted in connection with the murder of 15-year-old Centurion resident Shayleen van Zanten has been released.

The teenager was on holiday with her father in Trafalgar, just south of Margate in KwaZulu-Natal, when she was allegedly killed for her cellphone.Police have described the suspect as short. He was apparently wearing a red T-shirt with black pants to the knee and over-sized flip-flops.

At about 7.30pm on Wednesday, the teenager was stabbed multiple times while walking to the family’s beach house with a friend.

Port Shepstone SAPS spokeswoman Lieutenant-Colonel Zandra Wiid said the two girls noticed a man approaching them and decided to turn around to go back to the house.

“As they neared the gate leading to the house, the man came up behind them and asked, in broken English, for a cellphone.”

It is believed Shayleen refused to hand over her phone and fought the attacker. “She was stabbed repeatedly in the chest, groin and arm. She was rushed to hospital but later died from her injuries. A case of murder has been opened but no arrests have been made yet,” Wiid said.

Shayleen’s aunt, Thea Coetser, said the family was devastated by what had happened. “My brother, Arie, was a single parent and he and Shayleen were very close. She was the one person he lived for,” Coetser said.

“If he wanted to take the cellphone, why didn’t he just take it?” Shayleen was described as a “very strong and independent person”.

“She was a top learner and involved with many activities at school. She was always reliable and respectful, but most of all she always had a smile,” said Coetser.

Shayleen’s ice-hockey coach, Trudie Coetzee, from the Forest Knights Ice Hockey Club, said: “We were all so shocked to hear about this. It feels unreal.”

Shayleen’s funeral will take place in Pretoria on Thursday.