Several fatalities in shootout between police and criminals in Mthatha
MTHATHA - A deadly shootout involving the National Intervention Unit has claimed the life of Eastern Cape taxi boss, Bishop Zola Yelelo.
Reports suggest that six people may have been killed during the incident near Mthatha Airport.
Information leading up to the shootout has not been released yet, but Yelelo has been on the police radar for the past couple of months.
In April, he appeared in Ezibeleni Magistrates Court facing charges of extortion and intimidation.
Yelelo had handed himself over to the police and was released on a R1500 bail.
The former SANTACO chairman in the province was also nabbed by the SAPS in November last year with some of his associates while having lunch at a Mall of Africa restaurant in Johannesburg.
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Six armed suspects were fatally shot during a shootout with police on R 61 between Mthatha and Ngcobo. Santaco national chairperson Zola Bishop Yolelo was among the deceased. Image: Armand Hough/Independent Newspapers THE South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) says its slain Eastern Cape chairperson Zola 'Bishop' Yolelo, who was killed in a shootout with police, will be remembered for 'his unwavering commitment and his robust approach' to leadership and engagement. Yolela, who is suspected of being an extortion kingpin in the Mthatha area and six others were killed when they apparently opened fire on police after having been stopped on the R61 road between Mthatha and Ngcobo on Monday afternoon. He was also suspected of being central to the recent attempts to extort Gift of the Givers teams assisting the Eastern Cape government in providing aid to victims of the recent deadly floods. However, the police could not confirm his involvement in the latest incident where aid teams were threatened not to provide water to residents as this was interfering with their 'business'. The police referred questions to the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) instead. Eastern Cape police spokesperson, Nobuntu Gantana confirmed that the intelligence driven operation targeted individuals suspected of involvement in extortion activities within the area. 'Six armed suspects were fatally shot during a shootout with police on R 61 between Mthatha and Ngcobo. Police stopped the vehicle, and the suspects stopped. The suspects stepped out of the vehicle and opened fire on police members. Officers returned fire in self-defence, resulting in the fatal shooting of all six suspects. 'The identities of the deceased are currently unknown. Forensic processes are underway to formally identify them. Firearms recovered from the suspects will undergo ballistic analysis,' said Gantana. 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Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad Loading Ipid did not respond to requests for comment by deadline. Santaco said it had learnt about Yolelo's death with 'deep sadness and shock'. 'Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, colleagues, and the entire industry at this difficult time,' santaco spokesperson, Rebecca Phala said. Santaco said Yolelo's journey in the taxi industry started from humble beginnings as a car washer and conductor, rising through the ranks serving as chairperson of the Uncedo Mthatha Taxi Association, regional chairperson of the OR Tambo Regional Council, and as a member of the NEC of Uncedo Taxi Association. Zola 'Bishop' Yolelo. Image: Facebook He later became part of Santaco's provincial leadership in the Eastern Cape when he was elected provincial chairperson in April 2022. That was two years after police had issued a reward for information leading to his arrest over his alleged involvement in taxi-related murder cases around Mthatha, Qumbu, Tsolo, Libode and Nqgeleni. At the time in 2018, police had said: " Although several suspects have already been arrested and appeared at courts, these suspects (Zola Bishop Yolela , Melikhaya Ndaba, Thabile Ntshovulana and Latuzana Makhamba) remain at large. Attempts to trace them thus far have been unsuccessful as they continually escape being arrested." Phala said Yolelo played a key role in founding and chairing the Eastern Cape Transport Tertiary Co-operative Limited (ECTTC) in 2010, advancing the formalisation and transformation of the taxi industry. The royal house of AbaThembu once again maintained that Yolelo was never a traditional leader and/or a Chief of the Mthatha West Area. 'It is a matter of public record that the Royal House of AbaThembu took legal steps against Mr Zola Yolelo 'bishop' before the Mthatha High Court; and successfully proved that Mr Zola Yolelo had no legal standing as leader of the Mthatha West either as chief or ordinary leader. 'We call upon all other individuals masquerading as chiefs and/or traditional leaders in the area, enabling their criminal enterprise as extortionists to immediately desist from such criminal behaviour. Desist now,' said the office of King Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo. Gift of the Givers could not be reached for comment yesterday. The ANC in the Eastern Cape did not respond to requests for comment on Yolelo's death and his ties to the party. Cape Times
Eyewitness News
21 hours ago
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AbaThembu royal house welcomes SAPS' effort to curb Mthatha West crime
JOHANNESBURG - The AbaThembu royal house has welcomed efforts by police in curbing rampant crime in the Mthatha West area. This followed a shootout between alleged extortionists and police on Monday night. Six suspects, who opened fire when they were stopped by law enforcement on the R61 road between Mthatha and Ngcobo, were all shot and killed. The royal house of AbaThembu said residents of Mthatha West have been terrorised by extortionists for years. The royal house advisor, Matthew Mpahlwa, said there were times when the area resembled a ghost town because multiple businesses and institutions would close their doors after they weren't able to pay protection fees. Mpahlwa said some schools in the area were pressured to pay up to R50,000 to continue operating. He added people there have been living in fear. 'They are very scared to speak up or to report these criminal elements to the police. In other words, it becomes a private contract between the shop owner and the said extortionist who comes at a specific time to collect money or the militant security guards would come and collect at a specified time, and that shop owner wouldn't dare tell the other one, but this is what is happening.' Mpahlwa said they are grateful for the work of the police's National Intervention Unit, which has been deployed in the area.
Daily Maverick
a day ago
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Eastern Cape taxi boss gunned down in police firefight with protection racket syndicate
An Eastern Cape taxi boss was among six people shot dead during a police shootout on the R61 outside Mthatha on Monday – part of an intelligence-driven crackdown on alleged extortionists linked to protection rackets. A well-known taxi boss in Mthatha was gunned down on Monday evening along with five suspects who were being followed by the police as part of an intelligence-driven operation. 'An intelligence-driven operation targeted individuals suspected of involvement in extortion activities within the area. Police stopped the vehicle and the suspects stopped. The suspects stepped out of the vehicle and opened fire on police members,' police spokesperson Brigadier Nobuntu Gantana said. 'Officers returned fire in self-defence, resulting in the fatal shooting of all six suspects.' She said on Tuesday that formal identification of the bodies had not yet been completed. One of the men who died appeared in court two months ago on charges of extortion and intimidation within the taxi industry and was released on bail of R1,500. He was sought by the team investigating taxi violence in the province. Transport and community safety MEC Xolile Nqatha expressed shock at the fatal shooting, which occurred on the R61 road between Mthatha and Ngcobo. Nqatha has warned residents that police will not tolerate lawlessness. 'We have learnt with shock the fatal shooting of the six suspects allegedly involved in extortion. The incident is taking place as SAPS are working tirelessly to combat crime in the province. Police can arrest or stop anyone, regardless of their position or status, if they have committed a crime and will defend themselves when attacked,' Nqatha added. The police remained on the scene on Monday night, conducting forensic investigations and processing evidence. Firearms recovered from the suspects will undergo ballistic analysis. While not identifying the taxi boss as one of the deceased in the shootout directly, the office of the Abathembu King, Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo, said on Monday night that he wanted to make it clear that the taxi boss – whose name is known to Daily Maverick – did not have legal standing as a traditional leader in Mthatha West. He said the high court had confirmed this in 2023. Dalindyebo had dismissed him as a headman of Mthatha West in 2023 and interdicts, brought by the taxi boss, were dismissed. He explained that individuals were using the 'cover' of being a traditional leader as a way to extort money from residents. Dalindyebo continued that the taxi boss was not a chief and after the death of Dalinzolo 'Sakie' Mareke, who was also not recognised as a traditional leader in Mthatha West, the Abethembu Kingdom had warned that criminal elements 'will be dealt with'. Mareke was shot in similar circumstances in Mthatha in September 2024, also by the police's National Intervention Unit. Mareke and his bodyguards had gone to the unit's headquarters in Mthatha after they learnt that the police had searched his house as part of an ongoing extortion investigation. Dalindyebo suggested that Mareke was involved in an extortion scheme involving the proceeds of a cellphone network tower at Laphum'ikhwezi Primary School. Mareke in turn held a meeting to raise money to sue the king for defamation. Dalindyebo expressed his gratitude to the National Intervention Unit, and ended his warning to extortionists in the area with the words: Desist now. The United Taxi Association of Mthatha also confirmed that six people, including the taxi boss, had been killed in the shootout. DM
