Family of Lavaun Witter, stabbed to death in Croydon on Friday: ‘We don’t know how we are going to go on. He was a legend’

The family of a 22-year-old killed in Croydon during a spate of stabbings in the area last weekend have described their devastation at his death.

Lavaun Witter was stabbed to death amid seven unconnected stabbings over 24 hours, which started on Friday evening.

The Metropolitan police and paramedics were called to a property in Wisbeach Road, Selhurst, Croydon, just after 8pm on Friday. Despite efforts to revive him, Mr Witter was pronounced dead at the scene at 9.09pm. No arrests have been made in connection with his death.

His family said in a statement that they had been left “absolutely devastated”, adding: “No one could have seen this coming. Lavaun was destined for greatness and he wanted to fly high. He just wanted to have a good life and to take care of his family.

“Everyone who knows him will remember him as a legend. We are all absolutely traumatised. We don’t know how we are going to go on. It is just too painful.

“The family is absolutely devastated and the impact this incident has had is enormous and his local community is distraught.”

Det Ch Insp Kate Kieran, from Specialist Crime South, appealed for witnesses or anyone with information to come forward.

She said: “We know that a group of males attended the address and an altercation occurred which resulted in Lavaun being fatally injured.

“Someone knows who did this and I would urge anyone who saw or heard anything shortly after 8pm on Friday evening to come forward, no matter how insignificant you think your information might be, it could help us piece together what happened.”

Mr Witter’s death was one of five such incidents reported in the area between 6.56pm and 9.12pm on Friday. At 11.20am on Saturday, a man in his 20s was stabbed in Coulsdon, then shortly after 3pm police were called to a stabbing of a 24-year-old near West Croydon station.