What happened to Senzo Meyiwa? Cause of death explored ahead of Netflix's Senzo: Murder of a Soccer Star premiere

Netflix released the official trailer for their five-part docu-series Senzo: Murder of a Soccer Star on Thursday, March 31, 2022. The true-crime documentary series is based on legendary soccer player Senzo Meyiwa's life and career, as well as the circumstances surrounding his untimely death, which shocked South Africa and the world.

The documentary series delves into the various theories, speculations, and multiple sides of the tale put forth in public by journalists and powerful law-enforcement authorities involved in the murder investigation.

Friends and family members are featured in the series, and they all have something to say about the unresolved and long-running case that has lasted eight years.

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How did Senzo Meyiwa die?

Senzo Meyiwa, a South African soccer player, was perhaps at the pinnacle of his career in 2014. He played goalkeeper for both the South African national team and the Orlando Pirates F.C. in Johannesburg.

Meyiwa was one of the most well-known figures in South African soccer by 2014, and he was even named the team's captain. Sadly, on October 26, 2014, everything came to an end as his career was cut short when he was murdered at the age of 27.

That night, Meyiwa was at his girlfriend, pop singer Kelly Khumalo's, mother's house. Two gunmen stormed into the residence in what seemed to be an attempted robbery. According to reports, the two gunmen demanded that people inside hand out their cellphones and money, while another accomplice waited outside.

According to police reports, the goalie was shot in the upper torso and died as a result of his injuries. Tumelo Waka Madlala, a friend of Meyiwa's, was there and told the Associated Press that Meyiwa attempted to stop the perpetrators before being shot. He said,

"As they were running away we tried to stop them and that is when they shot him at point-blank range."

South Africa and the soccer community were devastated by Meyiwa's death. South African national team coach Tshepo Mashaba told USA Today, choking back tears,

"Most of the time, these things come when you least expect. We're going to miss Senzo a lot ... never mind his saving goals."

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The lengthy inquiry into Senzo Meyiwa's murder

Senzo Meyiwa's death was the subject of a lengthy investigation. According to Times Live, mere days after the murder, authorities produced a sketch of the suspect, and ballistic data revealed that the goalkeeper was slain with a CZ75 9mm pistol.

A series of setbacks, including the death of one of the suspects on detectives' radar, resulted in little progress on the investigation until five individuals were accused in connection with the crime, all of whom were already serving time for other crimes.

When the five men were indicted in connection with Meyiwa's death, one of them was already serving a 30-year jail sentence for a murder committed with a CZ75 9mm pistol.

Another potential issue arose in 2022, just before the trial, threatening to postpone matters even more. Four of the five accused men were represented by the same lawyer.

Malesela Teffo, the attorney, had previously represented Meyiwa's brother Sifiso, raising worries about a possible conflict of interest. The murder trial is set to begin in April 2022.

Senzo: Murder of a Soccer Star will premiere on Netflix on April 7, 2022.