“Brigadier, you know, these people - they are going to kill me. I'm going to die,” Mathipa reportedly said.

Two days later, in August 2023, the Hawks detective was shot dead while driving on a motorway outside Pretoria.

Three years on, seven Special Forces members and one military police officer have been charged with his murder . They deny the charges, and no trial date has been set. Three of those accused have also reportedly failed to comply with a court order revoking their bail.

At the time of his death, Mathipa was investigating the disappearance of Ethiopian national Abdella Hussein Abadigga and his bodyguard, Kadir Abotese.

Abadigga was no ordinary missing person. In 2022, the US Treasury sanctioned him, accusing him of recruiting young men in South Africa for weapons training, extorting money and sending funds to ISIS supporters elsewhere in Africa. The US also identified him as a trusted supporter of ISIS figure Bilal al-Sudani.

But Mathipa's investigation was focused on a different allegation: that South African Special Forces had abducted and killed Abadigga and Abotese in December 2022.

Evidence obtained by investigators reportedly connected vehicles seen around the time of their disappearance to Peters Communications Trust (PCT), described in police documents as a Special Forces front company.

That same company would later surface in the investigation into Mathipa's death.

Police say a black BMW followed Mathipa shortly before he was shot. Toll-camera footage allegedly identified Special Forces officer Sunnybooi Wambi as one of its occupants, while the vehicle was also registered to PCT.

The wider case has led to the arrests of 12 South African military personnel on various charges connected to Mathipa, Abadigga and Abotese. All deny the charges.

“We need justice ,” his daughter Basetsana said. “I'm never going to see my dad anymore... Why my dad? Because he was doing his job.”

Footage showed mourners filling Stellenbosch Town Hall, with candles lit in Adams's memory as relatives, football officials, former teammates and fans gathered to remember the 25-year-old.

Nearly a week after his sudden death, Adams's family said they were still struggling to come to terms with the loss.

"Reality didn't kick in yet," Adams's sister, Amy Adams, said. "We are here to support each other through this difficult time."

His cousin, Aiden Johnson, described the family's grief.

"It's still a very sensitive matter. We were struggling a lot," he said. "Very emotional. But yeah, we trying to support each other and just be there for each other as we're supposed to. Because I believe that's what he would have wanted."

Adams began his football journey in Stellenbosch and made 139 senior appearances for the club, helping lift the Carling Knockout trophy in 2023 before joining Mamelodi Sundowns in January 2025.

His performances earned him a place in South Africa's squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, where he made three appearances and helped Bafana Bafana reach the knockout stages for the first time.

George Rhoda, president of the South African Football Association's Cape Winelands region, said Adams's death had left a deep void.

"It's a big loss not only to the national team but also to the people of South Africa, as the contribution is made to all our people in Stellenbosch especially. A huge, huge and a big, big loss to our city and to the country," Rhoda said.

Police said Adams's body was discovered at a property in Cape Town's Schotsche Kloof neighbourhood on Saturday morning.

An inquest has been opened, but authorities have not yet announced the cause of his death.