Durban - Police have said that they are intensifying their search for a Pietermaritzburg man who is believed to be on the run after his wife was beaten and strangled to death in their home.
On Thursday, police found the couple's white VW Polo however there was no sign of Roland Pillay.
Provincial police spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Thulani Zwane, said the car was recovered in Hilton, near PMB. The car had suffered engine damage.
Police combed the area where the car was found, searching for clues.
Pillay's wife, Verusha Padayachee, was found dead in their Ascot Park home on Tuesday.
Padayachee's bloodied body was found by her brother who went to investigate after she did not pick up her daughter from her in-laws home earlier that day.
It is alleged that her hands were tied above her head with cable ties and that she has suffered injuries to her head.
Zwane said police were informed that a murder had taken place at the home and proceeded to the scene.
"They found a woman who had been fatally strangled and her car was missing. A case of murder was opened at the Alexandra Road police station for further investigation," Zwane said.
Pillay, a bodybuilder and amateur MMC cage fighter has been on the run ever since.
According to the Maritzburg Sun, witnesses claimed to have seen Pillay - on the day of his wife's murder - at a pharmacy where he was buying painkillers and plasters. He has bruises and scratches on his face, witnesses alleged.
Padayachee was 32-years-old and was the owner of a health and fitness centre. Her death has left the community in shock.
Anyone with any information on Pillay’s whereabouts must call Warrant Officer Naidoo on 084 905 5564 or Crime Stop on 08600 101111.