The investigation into Anele Tempe's death resurfaces: What was said in court and what remains unproven

Background

Anele Tembe, 22, died after falling from the 10th floor of the Pepperclub Hotel in Cape Town, in the early hours of the morning of 11 April 2021.

At the time, she was engaged to the late rapper Kiernan AKA Forbes, who was with her at the hotel, and who was later shot dead in Durban in February 2023.

More than five years later, a formal judicial inquest is being held at the Cape Town Regional Court, to determine the circumstances of the death, and whether there was any negligence or unlawful conduct that contributed to it. The inquest is not a criminal trial, and it does not accuse anyone at this stage.

The inquest resumed in October 2026, with new testimony from police officers and experts in forensic medicine and toxicology.

Why has the inquest returned to the spotlight now?

The inquest has returned to the spotlight for two main reasons.

First, the October 2026 hearings: On 19 and 20 October 2026, the court heard new testimony that had not previously been presented in this detail, including fall analysis, medical examination, toxicology results, and the post-mortem examination.

Second, a public statement by Forbes' father: After the first day of hearings, Tony Forbes, AKA's father, spoke publicly outside the court, and expressed his dissatisfaction with the way the inquest was being handled.

What Tony Forbes said publicly

According to TimesLIVE, Forbes said after the Monday 19 October hearing that he was frustrated because the facts or statements had not been interrogated more robustly, because there are clear differences between what the witnesses are saying.

He said he had expected the magistrate and the prosecution to pick up on these matters and ask questions about them, but it seems that is not happening, and that they are just going through the motions.

Forbes also said that claims presented in court on Monday about scratches on his son's back do not match, according to him, the medical report he had seen, which did not mention scratches in that place. He asked why this discrepancy had not been tested in court.

These are statements by Forbes' father, expressing his opinion on the conduct of the proceedings, and they are not a finding reached by the court.

What did the court actually hear?

Footprint on the balcony

A senior police officer said a footprint believed to belong to Tembe was found on the outer edge of the balcony railing, and partial prints towards the room door. He interpreted this as meaning her back was facing the street and her face was facing the room.

He added that no fingerprints were found on the railing, and said the crime scene may have been contaminated, and that people who looked over the balcony after the incident may have wiped away traces.

Fall analysis

Forensic analyst Jeremy Philander said his work concluded that the fall could be consistent with a jump or a push, but he did not determine which of the two actually happened. He said that slipping and falling does not fit the physical evidence, according to his analysis.

He added that Tembe fell about 5.1 metres from the hotel wall.

Medical examination of Forbes

The doctor who examined Forbes shortly after the death said Forbes had fresh scratches and bruises on his left forearm, right leg, right knee, and neck. He said the injuries appeared recent, estimated to be less than 6 to 12 hours old at the time of the examination, and appeared to have been caused by sharp and blunt objects.

The doctor said Forbes was cooperative but appeared stressed and agitated, and he was unable to get a clear account from him of how the bruises occurred.

Toxicology results

The toxicologist, the sixth witness, said tests showed the presence of cocaine and its breakdown products, in addition to cocaethylene, which forms when cocaine is taken with alcohol, and norcocaine, alongside breakdown products associated with antidepressants and antipsychotic medication.

He explained that his role was limited to identifying the substances present in the samples, and that determining the combined effect of these substances, or whether they were lethal in combination, was outside his area of expertise. The results also did not precisely determine when the cocaine had been taken.

Post-mortem examination

The forensic pathologist, the seventh witness, said the post-mortem examination found no clear evidence of strangulation, despite two injuries on the front of the neck. She explained that there were no fractures of the hyoid bone or thyroid cartilage, and no evidence of fingertip bruising usually associated with strangulation.

She said the injuries could have resulted from suction, friction or compression, and that they may have occurred during the fall. She also mentioned the presence of parts of a tree and leaves in Tembe's hair and on her body, suggesting she may have struck a tree during the fall.

She attributed the cause of death to multiple injuries caused by blunt force due to the fall.

Earlier testimony mentioned in the coverage

In earlier hearings, TimesLIVE reported that a hotel employee said Forbes called reception and asked for help for a person threatening to jump from the balcony, and that she heard a scream and then a loud impact sound during the call.

Another witness who was staying near the location said he heard a woman screaming shortly before the fall.

These are testimonies reported in court, and the court has not yet determined their weight or accuracy.

Why should rumours be avoided in this story?

First, the inquest is not over: The court has not issued any conclusion on whether the fall was a jump, a push, or an accident. Any definitive claim now is speculation, not fact.

Second, testimonies are sometimes contradictory: As Forbes himself pointed out, there are differences between what witnesses said and the medical reports. It is the court's role to test these differences, not the role of social media.

Third, medical evidence has limits: The presence of a substance in the body does not by itself prove the cause of behaviour or the cause of death. The toxicology and post-mortem experts themselves confirmed these limits in their testimony.

Fourth, respect for both families: The Tembe family and the Forbes family have both lost their children. Publishing unverified theories increases the pain and distorts the public record of the case.

The sound journalistic rule here is to report what was said in court, attribute it to the speaker, and clearly distinguish between testimony, opinion, and a judicial finding. What the court has not said, we do not say.

The inquest is expected to resume on 17 November, according to the coverage.