Padayachee is being laid to rest days after he was shot dead on the R21 in Ekurhuleni.
Preggy Padayachee is being buried on Thursday. Picture: Supplied.
The uncle-in-law of former Crime Intelligence deputy head Feroz Khan, Pragasen “Preggy” Padayachee, is being laid to rest in Johannesburg.
Padayachee’s funeral is being held at Beyers Naude Service Road, Roosevelt, before proceeding to the Brixton Hindu Crematorium on Thursday, 8 August 2026.
‘Respected businessman’
According to the eulogy, Padayachee was described as a respected businessman whose life was “defined not only by his achievements, but also by his kindness, humility and deep concern for others.”
Padayachee is being laid to rest days after he was shot dead on the R21 in Ekurhuleni on Monday evening, hours before Khan was due to give evidence behind closed doors on Tuesday.
Madlanga commission
Khan appeared remotely in camera before the commission, but his testimony was postponed following Padayachee’s death.
The commission said it had yet to set a new date.
Possible motives?
Questions about whether Padayachee’s killing was intended to send a warning to Khan ahead of his postponed testimony before the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry loom over the incident.
A security services source told The Citizen that authorities were working with two theories.
The first is that Padayachee’s murder may be connected to Khan and what he potentially knows about organised crime.
The second is that Padayachee’s activities as a moneylender may have led someone to lure him to the R21 highway.
Shooting
According to police, preliminary information indicated that the driver of a Fiat broke down and contacted a friend for assistance.
The friend arrived with two other people, and shots were fired while they were attending to the vehicle.
The driver attempted to escape the gunfire, lost control and crashed into a barrier. One person was killed and another was wounded.
Police have not publicly established a motive.
Khan attempted assassination
Khan survived an apparent assassination attempt outside his Houghton home on 28 June, shortly before he was due to appear before the commission for the first time.
Police subsequently brought the Political Killings Task Team (PKTT) into the investigation.
“Preggy was very close to former General Feroz Khan. In fact, he was one of the first people at Milpark Hospital after Feroz was shot,” the source said.
‘Message to Khan’
Padayachee subsequently spoke publicly on behalf of the family and said those responsible for the attack on Khan “must pay”.
“It’s bizarre that before Feroz was set to testify in person at the Madlanga commission, he got shot and now, as he’s about to testify in camera, a close associate is shot and killed,” the source said.
“It’s as if somebody’s sending a message to Feroz that we’ve shot you as a warning because you know something, and now we are shooting someone close to you because you haven’t listened.”
The source said this line of inquiry was looking at possible links to individuals involved in other illicit trades.
Additional reporting by Hein Kaiser.
