His lifeless body was discovered by his parents. Pikoli's family plans to have a memorial service on Wednesday and the funeral will be on Friday, 16 April. Messages of condolences have been pouring in following the reports of the death of Zimbabwean-born author Phumlani Pikoli. According to family spokesperson Twiggs Xiphu, the 33-year-old's body was discovered by both his parents Advocate Vusumuzi and Girlie Pikoli in his flat in Johannesburg on Sunday. The cause of death is unknown. Pikoli's publisher Andrea Nattrass told News24 that she will miss Pikoli deeply. "I've known him since 2017, and published his first book in 2018," she said.