Sandesh Singh’s search for a better future ends in Queenstown tragedy

The man who died after a crash near Queenstown on Sunday had arrived in New Zealand six months earlier seeking a better future.

Police this afternoon named him as Sandesh Singh, 29, from Jacks Point, Queenstown.

A Givealittle page set up by a friend said Singh was originally from Jammu, India, and had arrived in New Zealand on a work visa. He was working for a commercial cleaning company.

The page said Singh had hoped to “build a better future and support his family”.

“His sudden death has left his family, friends, colleagues and community deeply heartbroken,” the page said.

The friend is raising money to return Singh’s body to India so his family can perform his final rites “surrounded by loved ones”.

Singh died in the early hours of Sunday after the vehicle he was travelling in crashed near Kawarau Falls.

No other vehicles were involved in the crash on State Highway 6, between Peninsula Rd and Boyd Rd, shortly before 4am.

Three other people were injured, one critically and two seriously, police said at the time.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand removed multiple people from the crashed vehicle near Queenstown.

One lane remained open after the crash, although the Serious Crash Unit’s attendance closed part of the road for a time.

“Our thoughts are with his family as they go through this difficult time,” police said in today’s name release.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand said multiple people were extricated from the vehicle.

Inquiries into the crash continue.