A 32-year-old Pinetown man who allegedly killed his 80-year-old grandmother and kicked her head around like a soccer ball has told the Durban High Court that he wants to plead guilty.
Thabo Ntokozo Nzimande made his first appearance in court this week.
The State alleges that on June 7, 2024, Nzimande attacked Beatrice DeLange, his grandmother, in their home at a flat in an estate on Maurice Nicholas Road, stabbed her multiple times in her chest and stomach with a knife or knives, and then decapitated her.
“At a subsequent post-mortem examination, the cause of death of the deceased was found to be multiple penetrating and decapitation injury,” the State said in its indictment.
Moreover, it alleges that the murder was premeditated. As the court proceedings started, Nzimande raised his hand and told the court that he wanted to plead guilty.
However, Judge Mfuniselwa Nkosi told him to follow the right procedure and talk to his legal counsel.
After his arrest last year in June, Nzimande was evaluated by a district surgeon at RK Khan Hospital and the report found him to be unfit to stand trial. That report recommended that he be booked a bed for further psychological evaluation.
The report also said Nzimande was diagnosed with Bipolar Mood Disorder as well as substance-induced psychotic disorder. The surgeon had also noted that Nzimande had sustained two head injuries as a child and had a history of substance abuse, which included cannabis, alcohol, and cocaine.
The doctor found that Nzimande was unable to account for himself and could not remember the incident at all.
However, the Fort Napier Hospital in Pietermaritzburg said Nzimande was fit to stand trial.
It was reported last year that the Fort Napier panel consisted of two doctors who separately and independently examined him and the hospital. The report came back and said there was insufficient information available to comment on the mental state of Nzimande at the time of the alleged offence.
“During the period of observation, he had psychiatric interviews, physical and neurological examinations, and urine drug tests. He was kept under constant observation by the psychiatric nursing staff. No psychiatric diagnosis, the accused is not mentally ill. He will be able to instruct his lawyer or follow court proceedings,” the report said.
He was arrested on the day of the incident and police found him at the scene wearing blood-stained clothes.
The victim’s body was found lying in the bedroom without the head, which was found in the lounge.
The matter will proceed next month.