The suspect will appear after another postponement made on 30 September, after he was expected to undergo psychiatric evaluation following an attempted suicide while he was in custody, following his arrest in Pietermaritzburg on 19 August. Pillay was 109 on a waiting list for a bed at Sterkfontein Hospital and was unable to go for the 30-day evaluation.
The suspect’s initial court date on 20 August was postponed to 28 August where Senior State Prosecutor Yusuf Baba finalised the arrangements for his psychiatric evaluation, and Pillay was subsequently sent for an assessment at Sterkfontein Hospital.
Police spokesperson, Captain Tsekiso Mofokeng, said Pillay was arrested by police on 19 August in Pietermaritzburg in KwaZulu-Natal, following the murder of a woman, identified by the police as Shareen Pillay, and believed to be the suspect’s wife.
He added, “The suspect was on the run following the murder of a woman on [16 August] on the corner of Peter Place and Karen Street in Bryanston.”
The victim was found in the grounds of a Bryanston office complex. A motorist saw her body and alerted paramedics to the incident. ER24 spokesperson, Werner Vermaark, said she was barely responsive when paramedics arrived at the scene. He said she later died at Mediclinic Sandton after substantial blood loss.
