Four suspects in the killing of former world champion boxer Zolani Tete were arrested, South African police said on Monday.
Tete was in his car outside his home last week when men wearing balaclavas opened fire, police said. A woman who was in the vehicle was injured and has since been hospitalized.
The shooting took place at Mdantsane, Eastern Cape, according to the police. Tete was arriving at his residence and waiting for the gate to open when he was ambushed by two armed suspects.
Police said one of the suspects arrested two days ago was expected to appear in court on Monday, while the other three would appear on a later date.
Record-breaking career
Tete held the World Boxing Federation flyweight title from 2007 to 2008 and the World Boxing Organization bantamweight title in 2017 and 2019.
He also won the IBF junior-bantamweight world title in 2014 after defeating Japan’s Teiru Kinoshita in Kobe. He later won the WBO bantamweight crown.
Tete is most recognized for his Guinness World Record for the fastest knockout in a world title fight. In 2017, he stunned fellow South African boxer Siboniso Gonya with a one-punch, 11-second knockout — a mark that remains the record.
The murder of the world champion renewed attention on violent crime in South Africa, which continues to have one of the world’s highest murder rates despite recent declines in homicides.
