The body of a once-popular content creator, rapper and musician, best known for his tracks, lip-syncing and viral rapping duets across TikTok and Instagram, was found in Gqeberha on Tuesday morning.
The 25-year-old Malabar resident, Wavern Boggenpoel, who went by “Wayden Ben” on social media, was found dead outside a home in Gelvandale.
During the Covid-19 lockdowns, the young man had built a strong following on TikTok and Instagram with his musical and comedic content.
While his exact cause of death is still under investigation, speculation has been rife on social media.
Police spokesperson Captain Andre Beetge confirmed that Boggenpoel’s body was discovered at about 11am on Tuesday against the boundary wall of a house in Holmon Drive, Parkridge, Gelvandale.
“The victim had blood on his mouth and nose,” Beetge said.
“The cause of death is under investigation.
“An inquest docket was opened and is being investigated by the Gelvandale SA Police Service.”
A Herald team visited Holmon Drive on Wednesday morning.
The area is an affluent part of Parkridge with double-storey houses, high walls and visible CCTV cameras.
A resident, who asked not be named, said that on Tuesday morning, which was refuse collection day, a group of about 40 vagrants were seen digging through the bins at about 7am.
“After the trucks had come and gone, the vagrants left and the street was quiet again.
“At around 9am, I got a call from my neighbour to tell me that there was a body lying on the pavement.
“When I went outside, I saw him lying there with blood on his mouth and nose.
“He had packets of food lying next to him.”
The resident pointed to a big house across the street and said that the man had been heard shouting outside the property earlier that morning.
“He was screaming for someone to help him but those guys [residents] leave for work at 6am.
“Then he went to the next house and pressed all the buttons on their gate before walking across here.
“He then sat down and fell over backwards.
“You can follow the blood trail ... but it does not go all the way.
“It doesn’t make sense.
“He was wearing three pairs of pants and his hands were blackened and dirty, almost as if he were homeless.
“But he did not look dangerous at all.
“He just seemed like a young, harmless kid.
“He was coughing up a lot of blood, so maybe he had internal injuries or he was very sick.”
A Herald team then drove to the address where Boggenpoel had lived and spoke to some neighbours, who all asked not to be named.
“I grew up with Wayden; he was one of my closest friends, but over the years things got really bad with him,” one of the neighbours said.
He then led the way into a dilapidated garage where he said Boggenpoel had lived.
The garage was surrounded by rubbish and building rubble.
He pointed to the entrance which was covered by a blanket.
“There used to be sliding doors here.
“They [went missing] one by one.
“And then the door frame was also [gone].”
Pointing at the blackened walls, he claimed the garage had likely been used to burn rubber off copper cables to resell them to scrap metal dealers.
“He was getting really sick from the fumes and the smoke,” the friend said.
“I even had to take him to hospital a few weeks ago because he couldn’t breathe properly.
“He didn’t want to tell me what the doctor had said.
“I am going to go for a walk around the area tonight [Wednesday] to ask what happened because some people say he was beaten up.
“But I think it might have to do with whatever was wrong with his lungs.”
After having grown in popularity, Boggenpoel disappeared off social media in about August 2025.
After news about his death circulated on social media on Tuesday and Wednesday, a number of people posted tributes to him.
“It looks like he [may have] lost his way, but this makes my heart hurt to see him like that,” one follower said.
“Whenever I saw his videos I always liked them.
“He was really out there trying to make it as a content creator — and he had the drive to become successful.
“He was really just a funny guy.”
Another posted: “I can’t believe he is gone.
“We need to look after our youth and uplift the laaities [younger people].
“He was really a genuine guy.
“This is so sad.
“Rest in peace, Wayden Ben, the lockdown king.”
His mother could not be reached for comment.
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