Rest in peace, Charles Yohane
Former Zimbabwe footballer Charles Yohane has been killed in South Africa at the age of 48 in an alleged car-jacking incident.
Yohane was named in Zimbabwe’s squad for their debut appearance at the Africa Cup of Nations in 2004 and made 23 appearances for his national side.
He spent nine seasons with South African side Bidvest Wits, where he broke their club appearance record in the process.
The defender featured 268 times for the club between 1997 and 2006 and captained the side for the majority of his time there.
After retiring from playing, Yohane had been working in Johannesburg as a football coach and a taxi driver.
His body was found in Soweto on Monday, but it is thought that he died on Saturday night.
Tragic news that former Zimbabwe, CAPS and Wits left-back Charles Yohane has been hijacked and killed in South Africa at the age of 48. He was in the Warriors squad for 2004 AFCON. Was coaching the Wits developmental side in SA. pic.twitter.com/XZxGb4L0qv
— Steve Vickers (@SteveVickers5) February 15, 2022
“He was hijacked, they took his car and shot him in the head,” his brother Lewis told BBC Sport.
His friend Innocent Chikoya – who played with him at Fire Batteries FC and African Wanderers in South Africa – labelled Yohane as a ‘clever and intelligent footballer’ who was a ‘leader, disciplined and dedicated’.
“He wasn’t a friend, he was a brother, and we have lost him in bad circumstances,” Chikoya told BBC Sport.
“He was clever, an intelligent footballer, he had ways of getting things done. He was a leader, disciplined and dedicated.
“I will be collecting his body from the funeral parlour on Thursday and will be taking him home.”
Edelbert Dinha, who was in the Zimbabwe squad at the 2006 Nations Cup and was a close friend to Yohane, revealed that he had been attempting to contact him over the weekend.
“We tried calling him from Saturday up to Monday, and we couldn’t reach him,” Dinha told BBC Sport.
“Then I went to the police station.
“Charles was a quiet person, always smiling, he never argued with anyone. He was coaching Leruma United FC in the ABC Motsepe League.”
Yohane is the second member of the 2004 Zimbabwe Africa Cup of Nations squad to die after striker Adam Ndlovu died in December 2012.
Related links:
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- Greek footballer dies aged 21 with no defibrillator or ambulance at stadium
- Fulham fan dies after suffering cardiac arrest in the stands at Craven Cottage
