Two arrested over murder of boxing star

More arrests are imminent after the former two-weight world champion was shot dead, South African police said

Police in South Africa’s Eastern Cape have arrested two men in connection with the murder of former world boxing champion Zolani Tete, who was fatally shot in Mdantsane on Friday.

The two persons of interest, aged 30 and 22, were arrested in Ku Gompo on Saturday following a swift, intelligence-driven operation involving multiple law enforcement units, police said.

Eastern Cape police spokesperson Brigadier Nobuntu Gantana said the suspects were in custody and were being questioned in connection with Tete’s murder and the attempted murder of a 27-year-old woman who was wounded in the attack.

“Due to the sensitive nature of the ongoing investigation, the SAPS is unable to disclose further details regarding the motive or the circumstances surrounding the arrests at this time,” Gantana said. “Investigators are following up on several leads, and more arrests are imminent.”

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Tete, 38, was killed outside his home in Mdantsane on Friday evening as he sat in his car waiting for the gate to open. Police said the shooting happened at about 6:30pm. Two armed men wearing balaclavas reportedly got out of another vehicle and opened fire on Tete and the woman travelling with him.

“In an attempt to escape the hail of bullets, the deceased drove his vehicle into the yard. He unfortunately succumbed to his injuries and was declared deceased on the scene,” Gantana said.

The woman sustained multiple gunshot wounds and was taken to a nearby hospital, where she remains. On Saturday, police confirmed Tete’s identity after notifying his next of kin.

Tete was one of South Africa’s most successful boxers, winning world titles in two weight divisions. He also holds a Guinness World Record for the fastest knockout in a world title fight.

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On November 18, 2017, he stopped Siboniso Gonya in 11 seconds at the SSE Arena in Belfast. Tete won the International Boxing Federation junior bantamweight title in Kobe, Japan, in July 2014 after stopping Teiru Kinoshita. He later held the World Boxing Organisation bantamweight title from 2017 until losing it to John Riel Casimero in Birmingham in November 2019. He had 34 professional fights, winning 29, including 22 by knockout. Tete grew up in Mdantsane, started boxing at the age of 8 and was trained by former world champion Vuyani Bungu.

He had not fought since July 2022, when he tested positive for the banned steroid stanozolol following his victory over Jason Cunningham at Wembley. The result was overturned to a no contest and Tete was handed a four-year ban, which ended on July 29 this year. Tete maintained that he had never knowingly taken the substance. In an interview with boxing magazine The Ring in January, he said he planned to return to the ring this year.

First published by IOL