Thurlow Cowan, 13, was playing with friends near an abandoned church building in Uitsig, Ravensmead, Cape Town, when he was shot and killed on Friday.
A 58-year-old security guard, Terrance Ramiah, has been arrested and charged with murder. Police say a private security officer fired shots at the premises, fatally wounding the boy in the back.
But the security company employing Ramiah has denied that he was at the scene and said vehicle-tracking records and his firearm were handed to police as evidence. The company has also provided him with an attorney and said it expects the charges to be dropped.
The competing versions have left Thurlow’s family searching for answers while the murder case moves through the courts.
According to Western Cape police spokesperson Constable Ndakhe Gwala, three boys were playing on the premises when the shooting happened.
“The 13-year-old boy sustained a gunshot wound to his back and succumbed to the injuries on the scene,” Gwala said.
Ramiah appeared in the Goodwood Magistrate’s Court on Monday. National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said the matter was postponed to Tuesday to allow the accused’s attorney to come on record.
The accused remains legally presumed innocent until the allegations against him are tested in court. The case is still at an early stage, and the evidence will have to establish who fired the shot, what happened at the premises and whether the accused was present when Thurlow was killed.
Family’s Account Of The Scene
Thurlow’s mother, Lauren Cowan, said the family rushed to the scene after being alerted to the shooting. She said they found her son lying on the ground with a bullet wound in his back.
The family wanted to pick him up, but Cowan said police officers told them not to touch him. She said she became increasingly distressed as she waited for the body to be removed.
“We wanted to pick him up, but the police at the scene told us not to pick him up. An hour later, my child was still lying on the ground. When I asked if they called the ambulance or the forensic team, my questions fell on deaf ears.
“It was like I was talking to no one because the cops wouldn’t answer me. Instead, they treated my boy like he was a bag of rubbish. The friends my son was with told me that before the police arrived, the man who shot my son was still on the scene, sitting in his vehicle,” said Cowan.
Cowan also accused police at the scene of failing to show compassion to the grieving family. She said officers appeared to laugh while relatives cried and community members gathered around the security guard’s vehicle.
“When we started getting agitated and questioning why they were laughing instead of helping to remove my child’s body, again, the police said nothing. I am so bitterly disappointed in the very cops tasked with safeguarding this country. It is so sad that this is how we are treated in mourning,” said Cowan.
She said the family repeatedly asked for Thurlow’s body to be removed and not left in the open.
She said the more the family pleaded for the body to be removed and not to “be lying in the streets like he meant nothing to anyone”, the more they were stared at by police and not provided with answers.
When the body was eventually taken to the mortuary, Cowan said she could not understand why it had taken so long for forensic officials to arrive.
She said it was unbelievable how “long a body is allowed to lay in the open” until forensics arrived.
The family’s account of the police response has not been tested in court. It may form part of questions raised about the handling of the crime scene and the period between the shooting and the removal of the body.
Cowan described her son as curious, an avid soccer player and someone who loved spending time outdoors. She said his death had left the family struggling to understand how a child who had gone out to play could be killed so suddenly.
“I still cannot believe he is gone from this world. My child did not deserve it; no one deserves to die like this. He was only 13 years old.”
Security Company Disputes Accused’s Presence
MK8 Security spokesperson Yolani Koen confirmed that Ramiah was employed by the company but denied that he had been present at the scene when Thurlow was killed.
Koen said his call-out at the time of the shooting showed that he was “extremely far from the murder scene”. She said the company believed the evidence would prove that he could not have fired the shot.
“We have trackers in all our company vehicles. The tracker records have since been handed over to the investigating officer, along with his firearm, as evidence. At this stage, we have provided an attorney for Terrance, and we are confident that the charges against him will be dropped because the evidence in the investigation will prove it,” Koen said.
The company’s position creates a central dispute in the case. Police have arrested and charged Ramiah, while his employer says vehicle records place him far from the scene.
The tracking data, firearm evidence, witness statements and other information will now be examined by investigators and, if necessary, presented in court. The accused’s attorney may challenge the police version and rely on the company’s records as the case develops.
Koen said the company was co-operating with police to help establish what happened. The vehicle tracker information could be important because it may show the movement of the vehicle Ramiah was allegedly using at the time of the shooting.
The firearm handed over to police will also be examined. Investigators may conduct ballistic tests to determine whether it was used in the shooting. Any forensic evidence from the crime scene, including spent cartridges, could be compared with the weapon.
The friends who were with Thurlow may also be important witnesses. Their accounts could help establish what the boys were doing, whether there was any confrontation and who was present before and after the shot was fired.
CPF Calls For Full Investigation
The Ravensmead Community Policing Forum has called for a thorough, transparent and impartial investigation. CPF spokesperson Zelda Trantraal said the organisation was deeply shocked by the child’s death and extended condolences to the family and wider Uitsig community.
“According to the information currently available to the CPF, the child was allegedly shot by a security guard on the premises,” Trantraal said.
She said the circumstances remained unclear, including why the child was on the premises and what led to the fatal shooting.
“The CPF extends its deepest condolences to the child’s family, friends and the wider Uitsig community during this devastating time. The loss of a young life is always tragic, but the death of a 13-year-old child in circumstances such as these is particularly distressing and raises serious concerns within our community,” Trantraal said.
Trantraal called on the police to conduct the investigation “without fear or favour” and to ensure that all relevant evidence was considered.
The CPF has also urged residents not to speculate, spread unverified information or take the law into their own hands. The call comes as anger and grief continue to grow in the community and as the accused’s security company disputes his alleged presence at the scene.
“We understand the anger, pain and frustration that this incident may evoke, but we urge everyone to remain calm and allow the investigation to take its course. At the same time, the CPF believes that every child has the right to safety and protection.
“The circumstances of this tragic incident must be fully established, and where wrongdoing is found, those responsible must be held accountable through due legal process,” Trantraal said.
The forum will continue engaging with police and other relevant stakeholders as more information becomes available.
The case now involves several questions that investigators will need to answer. These include whether Ramiah was at the abandoned church building, whether a firearm was discharged by a security officer and whether the vehicle-tracking records support or contradict the police case.
The court will also have to consider the evidence as the matter progresses. A criminal charge is not a finding of guilt, and the accused will have the opportunity to challenge the case against him.
For Thurlow’s family, the legal process comes after an unimaginable loss. They are mourning a 13-year-old boy who was described as curious, active and passionate about soccer. His mother has also raised serious concerns about how the scene was handled and how the family was treated while waiting for his body to be removed.
Those concerns may require separate attention from the criminal investigation. The central murder case will focus on who shot Thurlow and whether that person can be held criminally responsible. Questions about police conduct, response times and communication with the family may also need to be reviewed.
For now, Ramiah remains in custody while his attorney comes on record. The case will continue in the Goodwood Magistrate’s Court, where the competing accounts will begin to be examined.
The Uitsig community is waiting for answers, while Thurlow’s family wants justice for a child whose life ended while he was playing with friends. Police and the security company have presented sharply different accounts, and only a careful investigation and fair court process can establish what happened.
