What really happened to Anele Tembe at the Pepperclub Hotel?

Author Melinda Ferguson has given readers a peek into what happened to Anele Tembe before and after her fatal fall at the Pepperclub Hotel in Cape Town in her book When Love Kills: The Tragic Tale of AKA and Anele.

Also sharing his perspective – allegedly over police evidence presented to him – is Anele’s father, Moses.

Anele died from her injuries after tumbling from the balcony of the couple’s tenth-floor hotel room on 11 April 2023.

Her death is currently being investigated via an ongoing inquest three years later.

IS THIS WHAT HAPPENED TO ANELE TEMBE BEFORE HER DEATH?

According to Melinda Ferguson, “crazy stuff went down” at the Pepperclub Hotel on the night before Anele Tembe’s death. The couple had been staying at the five-star hotel after AKA performed at the Ayepyep Club in Kloof Street.

“Threesomes and foursomes were allegedly happening in some of the rooms. The alcohol continued to flow, and there was drugs aplenty”.

Melinda – who believes Anele was under strong psychiatric medication – allegedly consumed both alcohol and “mood-altering substances” along with AKA.

The couple argued over Anele’s alleged insecurities and jealousy over her partner’s interactions with female fans, as well as his baby mama, DJ Zinhle.

The author then detailed a sequence of events amid the conflict, which included:

• AKA claimed he went down to reception to book another room, which was something he did not do, as per reports.
• Went back to the room, where the argument continued.
• Anele then took off her clothes and reportedly jumped off the balcony while AKA retreated to the bathroom. 
• AKA called reception to ask them to send up security
• She provided an “alternative deadly scenario” in which AKA accidentally or purposefully pushed her off the balcony. This, is after both she and Moses Tembe believed Anele tried to end her relationship with AKA.
• Anele was alive for 20 minutes after her fall. AKA did not attend to her.

ORDERING TEQUILA AFTERWARDS

According to Moses Tembe’s account, AKA refused to go down and see his fiancée Anele Tembe as she lay dying on the pavement. Instead, he went to a room occupied by a member of his entourage.

He said in the book: “Who doesn’t go down and try to help the woman he loves when he sees her lying in the street?

“No one who saw the body of the woman they loved wouldn’t have rushed down to help her. She wasn’t dead. 

“When Rob Stefanutto [an eyewitness] approached Anele, she responded by blinking. Within minutes of seeing his fiancee lying on the road, Kiernan orders tequila. Who does that?”

CALLING AN ‘UNDERWORLD FAMILY’ AFTER THE TRAGEDY?

According to IOL, a legal letter from the Tembe family to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA)  list several damning allegations against AKA following Anele’s death.

One of the claims made by the family was that the rapper allegedly made a call to “a certain powerful underworld family in the Western Cape.”

The letter claimed that while AKA did not phone the paramedics, eyewitness Rob Stefanutto did.

The letter further claims that Anele phone was allegedly “wiped clean” following the tragedy.

In an interview with Bar Leader TV in 2021, AKA – who was born in Mitchells Plain –  claimed that the first person he called after Nelli’s death was his father, Tony Forbes.

He said: “My father lives in Cape Town….I don’t remember even having my phone. I just remember someone passing me a phone, saying my dad wants to speak to me”.

AKA also claimed his dad  – who came to the hotel – called Anele’s family to break the news of her death.

INSIDE ANELE TEMBE AND AKA’S PEPPERCLUB HOTEL ROOM

According to Timeslive, AKA and Anele Tembe stayed in either the Deluxe or Superior Deluxe room located on the 10th floor of the Pepperclub Hotel.

The rooms boast a luxury lounge area, en-suite bathroom, and balcony overlooking the city and attractions like Table Mountain, Signal Hill, or Table Bay.