*This article has been edited
Cape Town - The family of Mamdouh “Egyptian Shawarma King” Mostafa, who was killed during a hijacking, are struggling to deal with his death.
Mostafa, 68, went missing on Friday last week after dropping a colleague at home in Eerste River.
He was a regular at festivals throughout the country, selling his shawarmas.
The Egyptian, who married his South African wife Aisa in the city in 1998, was found stabbed to death in Epping on Friday night.
“He was a qualified biochemistry teacher and taught at schools in Zambia before moving to Cape Town. Mamdouh was well known throughout the country. It is safe to say he was a high-profile personality,” said Mostafa’s brother-in-law, Abdurrasheed Rossier.
He added that on Friday afternoon, Mostafa attended mosque in Colorado Park near Mitchell’s Plain, where he lived.
He then left to drop a colleague at home in Eerste River.
“He received a traffic fine in Hindle Road in Delft at about 4pm. He might have been on his way back from Eerste River at that time.
“An ambulance driver spotted the Nissan One Tonner Mamdouh was driving in Epping later on Friday night.
“He said he saw them (alleged killers) throw Mamdouh’s body out of the vehicle and then they sped away,” Rossier said.
“They managed to get the registration from the Nissan One Tonner and traced the address from a fine he had received earlier in the day.”
Police spokesperson Noloyiso Rwexana said Mostafa was found with stab wounds on his body.
“A case of murder is under investigation. No one has been arrested at this stage.”
Tributes for the popular “Shawarma King” have been pouring in on social media networks after news of Mostafa’s murder spread.
Aisa was too distraught to speak to the Cape Times on Monday.
Rossier added that Mostafa’s death had left the entire family reeling from the loss.
“This incident has left many unanswered questions and we hope the police do their job to catch the criminals who did this.
“He was a fairly carefree person when he came to Cape Town, but we educated him about crime here.
“ This is a man who had so many friends wherever he went. He knew people from all over, not only in Cape Town, but in the broader South Africa too,” Rossier said.
Cape Times