“I’m running late for supper preparations,” reads the last message from David Weru to his parents after promising them a delicious cooked meal.

The last time the family saw Weru alive was when they dropped him off at the Midrand Gautrain station on Saturday June 13.

His body was found in a toilet at a restaurant in Midrand on Monday June 15, said police spokesperson Capt Kay Makhubele.

His family is appealing for answers.

Family spokesperson Dr Chomba Chuma said after knocking off from work on June 13, Weru informed his parents that he needed to make a quick stop at Boulders Shopping Centre in Midrand.

“He sent his parents a message informing them that he was coming back home and would prepare dinner around 7pm that evening,” Chuma said.  

“A few minutes later, he sent another message to inform them that he was running late. That was the last message he sent them. When he didn’t show up, his parents started to wonder what was going on.”

Calls to Weru went unanswered on the Sunday, “so they [family] were wondering what was happening,” he said.

Chuma said while it was unusual for Weru to go offline, his parents wondered if he was behaving like a “typical youngster” and had gone out with friends. 

On Monday [June 15] they decided to ask for help at the police station, said Chuma.

“As they were about to do that, they were called to come ... to identify his body,” he said.

Makhubele said Weru was seen entering a restaurant on June 13 before closing time.

The restaurant was closed on Sunday June 14.

“When closed they were not aware that there was somebody in a bathroom until they opened again on Monday [June 15].

“The body had no visible injuries and an inquest was opened,” Makhubele said.

Chuma described the 25-year-old as an active member in his community. Weru had a BCom qualification and worked as a social media manager in Sandton.

“He was very enthusiastic; he was just starting out in life, trying to put his life together as a young person. He was even looking forward to moving out from home and starting a life. He was a very active member of the community and the church,” he said.

Weru was buried at the Waterfall Cemetery on Tuesday this week.

Chuma said the family was devastated, mostly because of the circumstances surrounding his death.

“No parent should ever get to bury their children, especially that young and especially from unknown circumstances. It has hit the parents hard and not only them but the whole Kenyan community,” he said.

“It has hit everyone who knew him. In the morning he was fine, he was dropped off by his mom at the Gautrain station to go to work and he never returned home.

“When someone passes on under those circumstances - in the morning you talk to the person and later on they are gone - it is a very devastating circumstance.”

Chuma said the family hoped that the police were going to treat the investigation with utmost importance.

• CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article said the body was found at Boulders Shopping Centre in Midrand. Weru told his family that he was going to the centre, but his body was not found at the centre. SowetanLIVE apologises for the error.