South African footballer Luke Fleurs was fatally shot during a car hijacking, police say.
The incident occurred at a petrol station on Wednesday night in the Johannesburg suburb of Florida.
Luke Fleurs, the 24-year-old Kaizer Chiefs star, was waiting to be served when he was approached by unidentified gunmen who demanded that he exit the vehicle.
Following the shooting, one of the suspects reportedly fled the scene with Fleurs’ car.
“The suspects pointed [at] him with a firearm and took him out of his vehicle, then shot him once on the upper body,” Gauteng police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Mavela Masondo told local media.
Kaizer Chiefs, renowned as one of the country’s most popular clubs and 12-time league champions, characterized his death as “tragic”.
The club stated that the police are managing the situation and will provide additional information in the near future.
Sports Minister Zizi Kodwa said he was “saddened that yet another life has been cut short due to violent crime”.
Last year, defender Fleurs made the move to Kaizer Chiefs from SuperSport United.
The former Under-23 international represented South Africa at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Although he had yet to make an appearance for the senior national team, reports indicated that his debut was imminent.
Describing Fleurs as a “classy defender” with “great technical abilities,” Kaizer Chiefs featured him on their website.
According to local media, he commenced his career in 2013 at the Ubuntu Cape Town Academy.
The Premier Soccer League announced that a moment of silence will be observed at all top-flight and second-tier matches this weekend in honor of Fleurs.
“We woke up to the heart-breaking and devastating news of the passing of this young life,” South African Football Association president Danny Jordaan said in a statement.
“This is such a huge loss for his family, friends, his teammates and football in general.”
Football fans have taken to social media to mourn him.
“The football family has lost a bright flame,” soccer presenter Carol Tshabalala posted on social media platform X.
South Africa is grappling with increasing gun violence, with several mass shootings reported in recent years. The country has one of the world’s highest murder rates, according to police data.