July unrest: Ex-security guard sentenced to 20 years in jail for killing Verulam father

A 38-year-old security guard who killed a man during the 2021 July unrest amid the looting and public violence in KwaZulu-Natal was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Joel Fenton Pillay appeared in the Scottburgh High Court in KZN on Monday where the sentence was handed down.  

KwaZulu-Natal NPA spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara said Pillay, who drove a marked security car owned by a security company, shot and killed Lindani Mthethwa on 12 July 2021 in Verulam, Durban.

Shooting

“Mthethwa, was walking on Ireland Street in Verulam, when Pillay drove past him, turned his vehicle around and drove back towards Mthethwa. When he was alongside Mthethwa he lowered the window of his vehicle and shot him in the head. Mthethwa died on the scene.”

During court proceedings, state prosecutor advocate Thabani Buthelezi led the testimony of two eyewitness who saw the shooting; as well as details of the tracking device that was installed on the vehicle that Pillay drove on the day of the incident.

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Sentence

Buthelezi also submitted a victim impact statement compiled by Mthethwa’s sister, and facilitated by court preparation officer Thandeka Nadi Mofokeng.

In her statement, the woman said Mthethwa was a responsible and hardworking person. She said that her family has been financially and emotionally affected adding that the incident was traumatic, as she still has flashbacks.

Ramkisson-Kara said in sentencing Pillay, the court deviated from the minimum sentence of life imprisonment, citing that he was a first time offender when he committed the offence.

“Pillay was sentenced accordingly, and the court found him unfit to possess a firearm. The NPA commends the work done by the prosecution and other stakeholders in securing the conviction.”

July unrest

More than 350 people were killed during the July 2021 riots in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng.

During the weeklong mayhem, shops and factories were closed with the total cost to the economy said to be more than R50 billion.

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