Nhlanhla Gasa's body was found floating in the Tugela River.
Residents saw the corpse and called the police, Lieutenant Colonel Vincent Mdunge said.
"[We] found that it was the body of a 63-year-old man. He had suffered multiple stab wounds."
Eyewitness News named him as Nhlanhla Gasa, an associate to President Jacob Zuma, and the father of South African TV personality Noni Gasa.
Police found his vehicle, a Jaguar, burnt beyond recognition several metres away.
"Officers then went to his home in Umhlanga and there they found blood around the house. This confirms that the attack started at his house and he was then taken to the river."
No valuables were taken from the house. A case of murder with aggravating circumstances and malicious damage to property was opened with the Durban North police.
No arrests had been made. – Sapa