Was Feroz Khan’s uncle lured over money?

ByRiaan Roux

Unnamed sources now say Preggy Padayachee, the uncle-in-law of fired Crime Intelligence Major General Feroz Khan, was lured to the R21 over money and that his murder had nothing to do with Khan. The police say the motive is unknown and nobody has been arrested. Khan’s lawyers treat the shooting as a threat to their client and have tied his evidence to the Madlanga Commission to security arrangements. Both positions cannot be true, and the commission’s final report is due on 25 January 2027.

This is an update to my article of 6 October 2026 on the shooting of Preggy Padayachee. It is a developing story, and very little more is known for certain than when I wrote that article.

Khan appeared, then asked for a delay

Feroz Khan was due to give evidence to the Madlanga Commission behind closed doors on Tuesday 6 October 2026. EWN reported that he appeared on the video link as scheduled, and that his own legal team then asked for a delay.

Commission spokesperson Jeremy Michaels said Khan was not in a position to testify that day, because of the death of a family member in a shooting on the R21 the night before. The commission postponed his evidence to a date that has yet to be determined.

The money claim

On the morning of 7 October 2026, Yusuf Abramjee posted what he called an exclusive. He said the police are following a number of leads.

According to his sources, investigators are looking into the possibility that the murder was linked to a money deal, and that it is unlikely to be connected to Khan’s testimony. Those sources say Padayachee got a call from someone he knew, who claimed to have broken down on the R21. Padayachee and a friend drove there, and gunmen opened fire when they arrived. The sources also say the vehicle had not broken down at all, and that Padayachee was lured to the spot.

The Citizen went further. Its reporter Hein Kaiser quoted a security services source who said Padayachee was the biggest moneylender at Gold Reef City Casino, lending to high-stakes gamblers. That source said he was lured to meet someone who owed him money, and that the meeting was first set for Emperors Palace and then moved to the R21.

A day earlier, IOL quoted a source who said the threats against Padayachee may have been linked to business.

Every one of these is a claim. 3 outlets carry the money story, and not 1 of their sources has a name. Lending money is also not a crime, and nobody has shown that Preggy Padayachee did anything wrong.

Three versions of one night

Put side by side, the accounts do not match.

The police statementAbramjee’s sourcesThe Citizen’s source
Why he was thereA driver in a Fiat reportedly broke down and phoned a friendA call about a breakdown that was not realA meeting to collect a debt
Who was with himThe friend arrived with 2 other peopleHe arrived with 1 friendNot stated
How he diedThe driver crashed into a barrier trying to get away from the gunfireHe was killed instantlyNot stated

The versions agree on 1 thing: a phone call put him on that road.

Nobody has named the person who made that call, and I am not going to guess. The police know who it is, because their own statement starts with that call. Finding that person and taking a statement is standard procedure, and I expect the detectives have done it or are busy with it. Whatever that person tells them is where the answer to this murder starts.

The same source offered the opposite theory

The source who gave The Citizen the moneylending story also gave it the other theory. He said it is as if somebody is sending a message to Khan: that Khan was shot as a warning because he knows something, and that someone close to him has now been shot because he has not listened.

So 1 insider handed a reporter 2 opposite explanations in the same conversation. That shows how little anybody outside the investigation really knows.

Officially, the police say the motive is unknown and no arrests have been made. When the police give no motive, people come up with their own. That is normal, and nobody should be blamed for it. A debt and a warning are both fair guesses, but they remain guesses.

What Khan’s lawyers did with it

Something real is already being decided because of this murder.

Briefly News reported that Khan’s attorney, Muhammed Vally, said the threat to Khan’s life cannot be dismissed. He said the legal team had formally approached the commission about heightened security concerns, and that a new date depends on those security arrangements being sorted out. A second lawyer, Kylen Ghirao, said the team is relying on law enforcement to identify and apprehend those responsible.

Briefly reported that the commission accepted the delay, because of the death in the family and because of legitimate safety considerations.

Losing a family member is a fair reason to stand down for a day. But the 2 stories now sit against each other. The sources say this murder had nothing to do with Khan. Khan’s lawyers say it is a threat to Khan.

If Padayachee was killed over money he was owed, then nobody was sending Khan a message, and the security argument falls away. If the lawyers are right, the sources are wrong, and this is the third shooting around this commission, after the murder of Witness D and the shooting of Khan himself.

The clock

Khan has now had 4 dates before the commission: 1 July 2026, 1 September 2026, 28 September 2026 and 6 October 2026. The commission has not heard 1 word of evidence from him. On 28 September 2026, Justice Madlanga ordered a criminal charge against him for ignoring a subpoena.

Public hearings resume in November 2026. Mail & Guardian reports that the commission’s final report is due on 25 January 2027.

Khan himself was shot on 28 June 2026. That is more than 100 days ago, and I could not find a single report of an arrest. A murder investigation takes as long as it takes, and it should not be rushed. But if Khan only gives evidence after the police make arrests, 25 January 2027 may come first.

The question for the commission

A man is dead, and his family deserves to know why. That is the job of the police.

The commission has a different job. It has to hear Feroz Khan before 25 January 2027. Justice Madlanga ordered him to file a written statement by 3 October 2026, and SABC reported that he did. He was already going to give his evidence on a video link, behind closed doors.

Whether Preggy Padayachee was killed over a debt or as a warning, the question for the commission is the same. When does it set the next date, and what will it do if that date also passes?

Sources

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