Jianming Feng: Tributes Flow After Melbourne Delivery Driver’s Death
Jianming Feng, a 47-year-old father of two, died after an alleged stabbing in Melbourne’s city center. A fundraiser for his family raised more than $170,000 in less than 24 hours, while mourners gathered near the state library and Victoria’s premier called for better protections for gig workers.
Jianming Feng, a 47-year-old food delivery driver, died after an alleged stabbing in Melbourne on Friday, prompting tributes and a fundraiser for his family. Devastating tributes flow for Feng as colleagues and mourners remember a father of two whose family lives in China.
Feng was one of two men allegedly attacked after they saw a man tampering with their bikes in Melbourne’s city center. The two confronted a 51-year-old man, and an altercation followed, with both delivery workers allegedly stabbed.
Paramedics treated Feng at the scene, but he died there. His 34-year-old colleague was taken to hospital.
Police arrested and interviewed the 51-year-old man on Saturday. Victoria Premier Ben Carroll said he was pleased someone was in custody and said “justice will be done.”
A fundraiser established by the Melbourne Chinatown Business Association raised more than $170,000 in less than 24 hours. Organizers said the money would help bring Feng’s family to Australia, cover funeral arrangements and support them.
Feng moved to Australia from China’s Shaanxi Province around 2017 to support his wife and two children, who remain in China. Organizers said the money he earned delivering food in Melbourne was “rarely spent on himself” and instead went to his family.
“He was simply a hardworking man trying to give his family a better future,” organizers wrote. They said his colleagues remembered him as “incredibly diligent, generous and kind-hearted.”
Feng’s family is planning to travel to Melbourne after his death. The fundraiser’s organizers said relatives were arranging urgent travel to handle its aftermath.
Floral tributes were placed near the state library as residents and delivery drivers mourned. Cards left with the flowers included messages of sympathy for Feng’s family and calls for safer streets.
Hundreds gathered on the library lawns on Saturday afternoon. Some voiced anger about crime in Melbourne, while others raised concerns about delivery drivers’ safety.
Carroll said the state was working to provide more support for gig economy workers. “People in the gig economy, particularly that are doing the transit deliveries, are some of the most vulnerable Victorians,” he told reporters in North Melbourne on Sunday, adding that they needed proper protections and workplace safety.
