SAPS launch a manhunt for the killers of the Lekone twins.

SA Police Services (SAPS) have launched a double murder investigation after twin brothers and Ekhayeni Lounge Bar owners were gunned down in Bochabela, Bloemfontein, on Wednesday, 21 October 2026.

The brothers, identified as 52-year-old Kegomodicoe and Keabecoe Lekone, were gunned down at one of their business premises.

According to a statement from the office of the Free State Provincial Commissioner, Mangaung police received a report of a shooting in progress from radio control at about 8.51am.

Police officers arrived at the scene at approximately 9am, where they found the two victims inside their charcoal-coloured Ford Ranger.

“Both the driver and the passenger suffered gunshot wounds,” the statement read.

ER24 paramedics declared both men dead at the scene.

A witness who was inside a double-storey building on the premises said he heard gunshots from upstairs.

The witness rushed outside to establish where the shots had come from and saw a man running towards a white Chevrolet Aveo hatchback.

The circumstances surrounding their fatal shooting and the motive remain unclear. No arrests have been made and police have launched a manhunt for the suspects.

Members of the public can contact Colonel Msokoli Bolsick on 082 466 8530, report information at their nearest police station, submit a tip through the MySAPS app or call Crime Stop on 08600 10111.

The Lekone twins, who had ties in tender-preneurs, were among the people convicted and sentenced for defrauding the Mangaung Municipality of R130 million in 2012. They were sentenced to eight years imprisonment each.