Five years after Anele Tembe's fatal fall from a Cape Town hotel, her inquest was set to finally begin this week - only to be postponed within hours.
The AKA and his late fiancée Anele Tembe. Picture: Instagram @akaworldwide
Five years after Anele Tembe fell to her death from a Cape Town hotel, and more than two years after her fiancé, rapper Kiernan “AKA” Forbes, was gunned down in Durban, the two intertwined tragedies remain unresolved in South African courts and firmly in the public’s imagination.
Here’s how the saga has unfolded, from the relationship’s early days to the latest developments this month.
The relationship
Anele Tembe, daughter of Durban businessman Moses Tembe, began a high-profile relationship with rapper Kiernan Forbes (known by his stage name AKA) that played out largely in public view. The same can be said for their engagement.
The couple’s relationship was – by multiple later accounts – turbulent, with reports of prior incidents that would resurface years later as central evidence.
April 2021: Anele Tembe’s death
On 11 April 2021, 22-year-old Tembe died after falling from the tenth floor of the Pepperclub Hotel in Cape Town, where she was staying with Forbes.
He had been scheduled to perform at the Ayepyep Lifestyle Lounge hours earlier.
Her death sparked immediate public shock and years of speculation about what happened in the hotel room; whether it was death by suicide, an accident, or something more sinister. Tembe’s family disputed the narrative that she had taken her own life from the outset.
June 2022: NPA declines to prosecute
More than a year later, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) announced it would not prosecute anyone in connection with Tembe’s death.
The decision angered the Tembe family, who considered legal action against the NPA and continued to press for the case to be reopened.
February 2023: AKA and Tibz are murdered
On 10 February 2023, Forbes and his close friend, chef Tebello “Tibz” Motsoane, were shot and killed outside the now-defunct Wish Restaurant on Florida Road in Durban – a killing that stunned the country and the music industry.
Investigators would later allege the assassination was a meticulously planned hit, with the accused allegedly paid R800 000 for their involvement.
Seven suspects were eventually arrested and charged: Lindokuhle Thabani Mkhwanazi, Lindani Zenzele Ndimande, Siyanda Eddie Myeza, Mziwethemba Harvey Gwabeni, Lindokuhle “Lindo” Mkhwanazi/Ndimande, and brothers Siyabonga Gezani and Malusi Dave Ndimande. The latter two extradited from Eswatini.
The accused face 11 charges, including murder, conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder, and firearms offences.
Forbes’ death, and the fact that he could no longer answer questions about Tembe’s final hours, became the catalyst for reopening the Tembe case.
The NPA referred the matter for a formal inquest.
2023-2025: The long wait for an inquest
In the years that followed, public pressure mounted for answers on Tembe’s death.
In October 2025, Tony Forbes, AKA’s father, publicly insisted his son was not a murderer and had not killed Tembe.
His comments came after former police minister Bheki Cele told parliament that investigators had not ruled out murder, criticising the NPA for what he called an “obvious case” that had not been enrolled for prosecution.
Meanwhile, the separate murder trial of the seven men accused in the Forbes and Motsoane killings crawled through the pre-trial process in the KwaZulu-Natal High Court in Durban – admissions under Section 220 of the Criminal Procedure Act, disputes over legal consultation access, and repeated postponements to finalise witness statements and appoint a trial judge.
By mid-2026, trial dates had been set for two sessions: 20 July-21 August and 5 October-6/8 November 2026, with the state expected to call 45 witnesses.
July 2026: The Tembe inquest finally opens – Then stalls
On Monday, 13 July, five years after her death, a formal inquest into Tembe’s death finally opened at the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court.
Six witnesses were expected to testify over what was originally scheduled as a three-day hearing, tasked with determining whether her death was suicide, an accident, or foul play, and whether anyone could be held legally responsible.
Ahead of the hearing, new evidence surfaced that reignited public debate:
- A text exchange between AKA and a lawyer representing the Tembe family, reportedly referencing an earlier incident at the Hilton Hotel in which Anele allegedly threatened to jump from a building.
- Messages between Tembe and Forbes in which she spoke about a previous attempt to take her own life, reportedly warning that “if there was a next time,” she would “do it for good”.
The Tembe family said the messages raised new questions and called on the NPA to investigate apparent discrepancies between an earlier affidavit and the newly surfaced texts. AKA’s family, for its part, welcomed the inquest, with Tony Forbes telling eNCA the family had “been waiting for the inquest to happen, so that the facts are put on the table in a balanced way,” and expressing confidence it would clear his son’s name.
But the hearing barely got underway. On the opening day, the presiding magistrate suffered a medical emergency, forcing an immediate postponement.
The NPA’s Western Cape spokesperson, Eric Ntabazalila, confirmed proceedings could not begin as planned.
Lawyers for the Tembe family and two witnesses were present in court. Representatives for the Forbes family were notably absent, and the NPA said it was still unclear whether the family intended to secure legal representation for the inquest.
New dates were set, with all parties in agreement: 7-9 September and 15-16 September 2026, extending the hearing from three days to five.
The public fallout
The postponement did little to quiet public debate – if anything, it intensified it.
On 14 July, Tony Forbes told EWN he had not been in contact with the Tembe family, reiterating his view that Tembe’s death may have been a suicide (a conclusion her family has long rejected) and confirming he had shared the text exchange in which she discussed wanting to end her life with “various parties”.
