/ 24 February 1999

REF SHOOTS PLAYER

A SOCCER referee is due to appear in court on Tuesday after he allegedly shot and killed a player during a weekend game in South Africa’s North West Province. The Citizen reports that referee Lebogang Mokgethi (34) allegedly shot Isaac Mkhwetha (20) after the player lunged at him with a knife when the opposing side scored a goal during the game on Sunday in Hartbeesfontein, south-west of Johannesburg. Nearly 600 spectators witnessed the incident at the match between the Hartbeesfontein Wallabies and the Try Agains. Mkhwetha, from the Wallabies, was shot in the chest and died at the police station. Soccer officials believed the match was a “gambling game” in which teams play for high stakes.