Family pay tribute to 'caring' Southsea teen Junior Singh who died in crash days after passing his driving test

Junior Singh, 17, lost his life when his car crashed and flipped onto its roof on the M275 westbound heading out of Portsmouth on Sunday.

The tragedy came just six days after the popular Southsea teenager had celebrated passing his driving test, his family said.

News of his death sent shock waves across Portsmouth and left Junior’s loved ones devastated.

His grief-stricken grandfather Jaswant Singh, of Salisbury Road, Southsea, said he had been left crushed by Junior’s death.

‘He was the best grandchild you could ever have wished for,’ a courageous Mr Singh told The News last night. ‘He was perfect. I was so proud of him. He was the most caring, thoughtful person who loved his family.

‘I have 15 grandchildren and Junior was the biggest character of the bunch. He was so loved.’

It’s not known what caused the crash, with police confirming that only one vehicle was involved.

The tragedy forced a closure of the M275 as emergency services fought to save Junior’s life.

In a terrible twist of fate, Junior’s uncle, Surinder Singh, said he unknowingly passed his nephew’s overturned vehicle while on his way to pick up a car from Portchester.

‘We saw it an hour or so after the accident and saw a car had flipped over and thought “gosh, they’re going to be lucky to get away with that”,’ said the 43-year-old.

Mr Singh added his world collapsed as soon as he found out it was his nephew who had been involved in the accident.

‘It was like being hit with a truck at a 100mph – I was just in total shock,’ he said.

‘When I found out, it was a feeling of numbness – it’s a feeling that’s there now.

‘Junior was so vibrant and full of life, we’re all just in a state of shock.’

Tributes flooded social media within hours of Junior’s death being revealed.

His family added they were overwhelmed by the show of affection shown online and in person by Junior’s close friends.

‘This has meant everything to the family,’ added Surinder. ‘Junior was a lovely boy who was very respectful and kind. He had his whole future ahead of him.

‘He always had a smile on his face and could make friends with anyone.’

Among those paying tribute to Junior yesterday was Stewart Vaughan, head teacher at Priory School in Southsea where the teen used to attend.

He said: ‘As a school we are devastated by the news. He was a lad who was full of charm and endeavour. We worked a lot with his family and would like to extend our heartfelt sympathies and support to them at this time.’

Schoolfriend Bradley Dempsey, 16, of Portsmouth said Junior was a ‘massive character’ at Priory and added: ‘Junior treated everyone with the utmost respect, he was funny and overall a great person to be around.’

Heartbroken Jade Donnelly-Taylor, 16, of Southsea, added: ‘He was such a lovely boy with a heart of gold, I haven’t got a bad word to say about him and he will be missed by so many people i wouldn’t even be able to put it into words.

‘He was not only an amazing friend but a loving caring person to all those around him too.’

Junior’s family also wished to thank the Sikh community in Portsmouth and Southampton for its support.

Police are still investigating the crash and urged anyone who witnessed it to call 101, quoting 44200014162 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.