The owner of a popular Gugulethu tavern was shot and killed on Friday afternoon [September 25]. Nkululeko Tuntubele (45) – also known as Nkuja – had just returned from the funeral of former Western Cape African National Congress (ANC) secretary Songezo Mjongile’s funeral when the incident unfolded.
Speaking to TimesLIVE, Tuntubele’s elder brother Bonisile Skipper Alam said he was killed near his home. Tuntubele was the owner of the Corner Lounge tavern.
“Yes it’s true, it happened yesterday evening when he was coming back from his friend, Songezo Mjongile’s funeral,” said Alam. “[He was shot] next to his newly-renovated house. He lived with his mother, brothers, sisters and four kids.”
In a statement, Western Cape South African Police Service spokesperson Sergeant Noloyiso Rwexana said that a case of murde ris currently under investigation. “According to reports, the incident occurred on Friday afternoon about 4.30pm. Police attended to the crime scene and they were told that the victim was shot and transported to hospital,” she said.
In November 2018, the Sunday Times reported that a hit to the value of R1-million was ordered on Cape Town advocate Pete Mihalik. It is alleged that this hit was ordered by Tuntubele, who was in jail for robbery at the time.
Mihalik was killed during an alleged hit outside of his children’s school in Green Point in 2018, and many believe that it was ordered by two “senior figures” in Cape Town’s underworld. It is alleged that the said senior figures approached Tuntubele to organise the hit, who in turn approached taxi boss Vuyile Maliti to recruit the killers.
Maliti, along with the alleged hitmen Sizwe Biyela and Nkosinathi Khumalo, have been arrested in connection with Mihalik’s murder. They are currently on trial at the the High Court in Cape Town.
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