Unmasking Vusi Khekhe: The 'Number 1 Tsotsi' sentenced to 30 years for murder and extortion claims
Vusi 'Khekhe' Mathibela, nicknamed Mamelodi's Number 1 Tsotsi, is an incarcerated South African businessman and taxi boss linked to the 2015 murder of businessman Wandile Bozwana. Before his downfall, Khekhe was feared around Mamelodi for running an extortion ring that intimidated the locals. The long arm of the law finally caught up with him, and he was sentenced to prison in 2024.
Source: UGC
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Key takeaways
- Vusi 'Khekhe' Mathibela operated several businesses in Mamelodi, including a fleet of taxis and a private security firm.
- In late 2018 and early 2019, Mamelodi business owners and taxi operators publicly complained about Vusi Khekhe's reign of terror across the township.
- Mathibela was found guilty of orchestrating the 2015 assassination of South African businessman Wandile Bozwana.
- He was given a 30-year prison sentence in 2024 for premeditated murder.
Vusi Khekhe's profile summary
Full name | Vusi 'Khekhe' Reginald Mathibela |
Nicknames | Number 1 Tsotsi |
Place of birth | Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa |
Place raised | Mamelodi East, Tshwane, South Africa |
Nationality | South African |
Marital status | Married |
Parents | Ntlane Mathibela |
Profession | Former businessman |
Prison sentence | 30 years for premeditated murder of Wandile Bozwana 10 years for attempted murder of Betty Mpho Baloyi |
Vusi 'Khekhe' Mathibela's background
Vusi Mathibela was born in the mid-1980s in Johannesburg, South Africa, and was primarily raised by his grandmother in Mamelodi East. His father, Ntlane Mathibela, operated a taxi business. When Vusi Khekhe's dad died in 2018, his mother reportedly continued to run the taxi company.
Who is Vusi Khekhe's wife?
The convicted Mamelodi taxi tycoon is married. However, Vusi Khekhe's wife's pictures and identity have been kept out of the spotlight despite being widely mentioned in relation to Mathibela's legal issues.
During Vusi's appearance in the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria in early 2019, he claimed that the police had assaulted his wife while searching their home in Midrand. She was reportedly arrested as the authorities were looking for him.
Claims of Vusi Mathibela's wife cheating on him with slain businessman Wandile Bozwana also emerged during his trial. Co-accused Bonginkosi Khumalo shared in a confession statement that Vusi ordered the hit after finding out about the affair.
Source: Original
Inside Vusi Khekhe's business empire
Vusi Mathibela dropped out of high school to become a taxi driver. He began his taxi business at the age of 17 after his grandmother gave him two taxis.
Mathibela rose through the Mamelodi taxi industry, and by 2015, his fleet consisted of about 50 minibuses. The notorious businessman also became an influential figure in the Mamelodi Amalgamated Taxi Association (MATA).
Outside his lucrative taxi business, Vusi operated a security company in Mamelodi that dealt in VIP protection. He also owned a nightclub and a restaurant in Johannesburg. Vusi Khekhe's cars and businesses were reportedly auctioned after his arrest for the murder of businessman Wandile Bozwana.
What is Vusi Khekhe's net worth?
Vusi Khekhe was estimated to have built a multi-million-rand empire before his arrest and conviction, but his exact net worth is unknown. The previously feared Mamelodi taxi boss built his wealth from scratch.
Vusi Khekhe's reign of terror over Mamelodi
In late 2018, a group of fed-up Mamelodi business owners, taxi operators, and residents accused Vusi Mathibela of running an extortion racket that unleashed a reign of terror across the township. The accusations first gained widespread public attention when the Sowetan newspaper published an expose on the extortion ring.
Mathibela and his associates reportedly demanded "protection fees" from businesses and weekly fees from taxi operators and drivers. Those who refused to pay were allegedly threatened with violence, death threats, and being forced out of business.
After widespread outcry, the South African Police Service, led by former Minister Bheki Cele, secured a warrant for Vusi Khekhe's arrest in March 2019. Vusi, alongside his co-accused Stemmer Monageng and Elias Skhosana, were charged with extortion, intimidation, and assault.
Vusi Khekhe denied all the community complaints made against him. During his 2019 appearance on Power Breakfast, the businessman revealed that certain individuals in Mamelodi East had an agenda to ruin his name and image. He also claimed that he owned several guns because of his security business.
It's not true what is said about me. Ke maka amatala. You can never have a situation where you have a person who's implicated in more than a thousand things, but not a single person can prove that I did those things to them.
On May 7, 2020, the extortion and assault charges against Vusi Mathibela were formally withdrawn in the Pretoria Regional Court. The National Prosecuting Authority dropped the charges after key witnesses withdrew their complaints and statements due to community-wide fear of retaliation.
Vusi Khekhe's murder charge and conviction
Vusi 'Khekhe' Mathibela's legal troubles began to emerge following the 2015 assassination of South African billionaire and tenderpreneur Wandile Bozwana. On October 2, 2015, the North West businessman was shot at least nine times on the Garsfontein N1 off-ramp in Pretoria, South Africa.
Bozwana, who had been involved in controversial tenders with the North West government, was a passenger in a vehicle driven by his business associate Betty Mpho Baloyi. He died at Unitas Hospital in Pretoria, while Baloyi, who was shot twice, survived.
Four men were arrested for the murder and attempted murder. The police arrested Sipho Patrick Hudla, Matamela Robert Motapa, Bonginkosi Paul Khumalo, and Vusi Khekhe Mathibela.
Khekhe managed to get out on a R50,000 bail in December 2016 while awaiting trial. The bail was revoked in 2019 after he violated the bail conditions by travelling outside South Africa to Mauritius and was reportedly planning to flee to Dubai. The bail money was forfeited to the state.
In June 2022, the Pretoria High Court convicted Vusi Mathibela, Sipho Hudla, Matamela Mutapa, and Bongani Khumalo for the 2015 fatal shooting of Wandile Bozwana. The four were found guilty of premeditated murder, attempted murder of Mpho Baloyi, possession of a firearm, and possession of ammunition. Vusi Khekhe was the mastermind.
Vusi Mathibela and his co-accused were sentenced in January 2024. The sentencing by a Pretoria High Court judge includes 30 years' imprisonment for premeditated murder, 10 years for attempted murder, 6 years for unlawful possession of a firearm, and 2 years for unlawful possession of ammunition. The sentences run concurrently.
What is Junior 13 and Vusi Khekhe's relationship?
There is no known connection between Junior 13 and Vusi Khekhe other than the fact that they were both involved in the South African criminal underworld. Junior 13, real name Monare Ignatius Selokwane, was a known criminal boss who built his wealth through bank robberies and a lucrative taxi business in Mamelodi.
On November 8, 2015, Junior 13 was assassinated by three unknown gunmen in a drive-by shooting outside his butchery business in Mamelodi. No arrests were made, and no one has ever been convicted of the murder.
FAQs
- Who is Vusi 'Khekhe' Mathibela? Vusi is a convicted South African businessman and former taxi boss from Mamelodi, Tshwane.
- How old is Vusi 'Khekhe' Mathibela? He is around 40 years old in 2026, but his exact date of birth is unknown. NPA listed his age at 36 when he was convicted in June 2022.
- Is Vusi Khekhe still in jail? Yes. The Pretoria High Court sentenced him to 30 years in prison in January 2024 for the 2015 murder of businessman Wandile Bozwana and the attempted murder of his companion, Betty Mpho Baloyi.
- Was Wandile Bozwana a billionaire? Bozwana is widely reported to have been a billionaire. By 2020, his estate was estimated to be worth over R303 million.
- Is Vusi Khekhe still alive? The infamous Mamelodi taxi boss is still alive.
- How many years was Vusi Khekhe sentenced? Khekhe was sentenced to 30 years in prison for orchestrating the killing of Wandile Bozwana. He also got 10 years for attempted murder, 6 years for firearm possession, and 2 years for ammunition possession, which run concurrently with the murder sentence.
Conclusion
Vusi Khekhe's case and eventual conviction brought relief to the previously terrorized Mamelodi community and some closure to the family of the late Wandile Bozwana. Mathibela had a promising rise in the South African taxi industry, but his fall from grace is proof that crime does not pay. The Number 1 Tsotsi continues to serve his 30-year prison sentence.
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Source: Briefly News
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