Durban - A Pietermaritzburg businessman was shot dead outside his Newholmes Way home on Thursday night as his terrified wife and three children looked on.
Imdaat Bhatti, 42, a Pakistani immigrant, was ambushed by four men shortly after returning home from evening prayers at a nearby mosque.
According to witnesses he was dragged out of his BMW in full view of his wife and children who screamed “Daddy, Daddy” as he was accosted.
A neighbour, Anusha Pillay, said she heard several shots.
She said after the first shot went off, she peeked through her window and saw the men drag Bhatti out of his vehicle.
As more shots rang out, she pressed her panic button, which alerted her private security company.
“My son, Ricardo, rushed him (Bhatti) to Northdale Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
“It was really sad to see the women and children trying to help him,” she said.
Pillay said he sustained wounds to his neck, head, back, chest and shoulder.
Police found Bhatti’s BMW abandoned in Birmingham Road a few kilometres from his home.
Detectives attached to the Mountain Rise police station are probing the murder.
Bhatti had lived in South Africa for more than seven years and had eight hardware shops around Pietermaritzburg.
Pietermaritzburg Bureau
Daily News