Allan Lewis Griffiths

Allan Lewis Griffiths (1946 - 2006)

Brief overview:

Alan (60), was murdered by his wife with intent to steal his motor vehicle in the Colenso area on 20th January 2006.

During 2005, the accused met the deceased, a 60 year old pensioner, who was an alcoholic, at a club in Richards Bay. Soon thereafter, the accused and the deceased got married to each other.

After some weeks, the deceased wanted to terminate his marriage to the accused. The deceased claimed that the accused was assaulting him and being abusive to him.

The deceased also took steps to end his marriage with the accused by approaching an attorney. He obtained a domestic violence interdict against the accused. The accused controlled the deceased to such an extent that he had no freedom of movement. The accused prevented the deceased from making contact with his family.

Sometime later, the accused decided that the deceased was to be killed. To achieve this end, the accused procured the services of persons to assist her in killing the deceased.

During the early hours of the morning of Friday, 20 January 2006, the accused and the deceased were travelling in the deceased’s Toyota Corolla motor vehicle from Gauteng to KwaZulu-Natal. By that time, the accused had arranged that the persons who were to assist her in killing the deceased were to pose as hitch hikers wanting a lift on the road, which the accused and the deceased were travelling on.

En route to KwaZulu-Natal, the deceased stopped the vehicle in which he was driving to give a lift to the accomplices of the accused.

At some point on the journey, in the Colenso area, the accomplices attacked and assaulted the deceased.

In the course of the attack upon him the deceased was strangled and sustained injuries to the chest. The deceased died as a result of asphyxia.

The accused was dropped off on the side of the road. The accused made her way to the police station at Estcourt where she made a statement alleging that she and the deceased were the victims of a hijacking.

After dropping the accused, the accomplices of the accused left in the deceased’s vehicle. The accomplices dumped the body of the deceased on a deserted district road and later drove to the N3 highway where they abandoned the vehicle.

Brief Biography:

• Other Victims/Family
• Funeral/Memorial
• The Farm/Smallholding
• The Region (Land disputes, other incidents etc.)

Attack Details:

• Date and time of attack
• Weapons
• Items Stolen
• Investigative officer/SAPS Case No:
• Torture, Gratuitous violence
• Indications of Hate Crime? Threats etc.

Perpetrator details:

• Number and Descriptions
• Arrests
• Name/s and age/s of Perpetrator/s
• Country of origin of Perpetrator/s
• Trial/Conviction
  • Thenjiwe Ignatia Griffiths was convicted for the murder of Allan Lewis Griffiths, her husband, as well as robbery with aggravating circumstances. He sentenced her to life imprisonment for murder and fifteen (15) years imprisonment for robbery with aggravating circumstances.

Additional Biographical Information:

Links to Media articles:

• https://archive.ph/LCDdW (Court Papers)