The tragic story of Loga Pillay: A husband's fight for justice after his wife's 2017 murder

It’s been eight years since a Durban man and his wife were brutally attacked at their home in Silverglen, Chatsworth, by an intern property practitioner from a well-known estate agency, together with three accomplices.

Loga Pillay’s wife, Gona (66), the former school principal at Southlands Secondary, was strangled and stabbed multiple times, in succumbing to her injuries during the incident on September 20, 2017.

Pillay, 77, survived because he had the presence of mind to “play dead” while being stabbed repeatedly by Basil Lungani Underhill, who was working for Pam Golding Properties at the time.

“I miss my wife greatly; there is not a day that I don’t think about her. We were together for nearly 40 years until she was taken away from me in a gruesome way,” said Pillay, a former educator, in an interview with the Daily News.

Three of the four men involved in the attack—Basil Underhill, his cousin Braveman Underhill, and Fredboy Msomi—were arrested shortly after the incident. They were convicted on charges of murder, attempted murder, and robbery for making off with valuables from the home and Pillay’s Mercedes Benz; all three were sentenced to life imprisonment at the Durban High Court in July 2019.

The fourth accused, Thembinkosi Buthelezi, was eventually arrested in September 2022 and made various appearances at the Chatsworth Magistrates Court thereafter. When the State requested a further adjournment on one occasion, the presiding magistrate refused the application, and the charges against Buthelezi were provisionally withdrawn. Since his release, Buthelezi's whereabouts remain unknown.

It pained Pillay that Buthelezi was at large, and he accused the State of not acting decisively. “I’m greatly disappointed that the matter was not finalised. I cannot understand it because the State had already prepared a comprehensive indictment, which detailed his involvement. To me, it’s like justice is incomplete for what happened to my wife and me. It's like our pain and suffering was in vain,” said Pillay.

Natasha Ramkisson-Kara, the National Prosecuting Authority’s spokesperson in KwaZulu-Natal, confirmed that Buthelezi was arrested in September 2022 and that further evidence had to be attended to, which spanned a few months.

“A decision was taken for the matter to be heard in the Regional Court. The magistrate unfortunately refused the State’s request for an adjournment for regional court dates, and the charges were provisionally withdrawn.

"The senior public prosecutor then applied for a warrant of arrest after all the investigations were complete. The accused is currently being sought by the police,” said Ramkisson-Kara.

In spite of various requests for comment, the Magistrates Commission did not provide a response.

On the day of the killing, Basil Underhill had arranged to meet the couple in the evening, along with a millionaire businessman who was keen to purchase and convert their seven-bedroom home into a bed-and-breakfast establishment.

Pillay, a father of three, said he and his wife decided to sell the house they had owned since 1980 and move into a residential complex in another part of Durban.

“My wife and I retired in 2013, and we decided to spend our retirement years travelling the world, which we did. Gona started a group for retired teachers. Earlier that day, she met with the group to plan a trip to Vietnam.”

Pillay said when they initially engaged the estate agency about selling the house, Basil Underhill was the agent they got connected with. “We trusted him wholeheartedly because of the brand he represented, and we agreed to the evening meeting; however, I have since realised that it was a strategic move.”

Pillay said while Underhill and his accomplices looked through their house, he dashed quickly to a nearby shop to purchase some cake and biscuits for their guests.

“We were all in the lounge after serving tea when Basil (Underhill) slipped into the kitchen. I was stunned when he suddenly placed the sharp point of the knife on my neck; I couldn't make sense of it. ‘What are you doing?’ my wife shouted.”

As Pillay attempted to stand, three of the men pounced and bundled him to the ground. The couple was then moved to the lower level of the house. Gona was made to sit on a toilet seat, where she was throttled and stabbed repeatedly until she died. Two of the assailants had Pillay pinned to the floor in a passage and was stabbed 18 times.

“Something told me to be quiet and not move. The amount of blood I lost would have convinced them I was dead. After they left, I decided to stay in that position for a few more minutes to allow blood to flow to my brain and ensure they were gone.”

Pillay was unable to get to his feet, so he leopard-crawled up a stairway to reach a panic alarm; his neighbour was the first to respond.

“I told her, ‘Basil from Pam Golding did this; he came with buyers for our house.’”

Pillay still wonders whether his wife would have still been alive had they not decided to sell the property.

“It’s been a painful eight years; I still yearn for my wife. She was a loving and caring person who was very passionate about education and loved nurturing children.

"Her school consistently produced some of the best matric results during her tenure. 

"It’s not easy to lose your life partner,” he said.

DAILY NEWS