Kop test for Parly ‘arsonist’
|Published
EVALUATED: Mafe. Phando Jikelo/African News Agency (ANA)
The man accused of setting fire to Parliament has been sent to the hospital wing of Pollsmoor Prison after returning from a mental evaluation in the Eastern Cape.
It is alleged that Zandile Christmas Mafe broke into Parliament in January last year and set fire to the National Assembly.
He has been charged with housebreaking with intent to commit arson, terrorism and theft.
Mafe appeared in the Western Cape High Court on Thursday, after undergoing a 30-day mental evaluation at Fort England Psychiatric Hospital in the Eastern Cape.
After pulling a klomp stunts like refusing to attend court, going on hunger strikes, and demanding to be provided with a kettle and flat-screen TV in his cell, the court ordered Mafe on the March 28 to be detained at the hospital.
Judge Nathan Erasmus ordered psychiatrists to test whether the accused is capable of understanding court proceedings.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said this was also to assess whether Mafe could have been affected by mental illness or intellectual disability, or any other impairment, at the time of the alleged crime.
On Thursday, Judge Erasmus told the court that he received an electronic report from the panel of experts on May 24 and shared it with the relevant parties.
He ordered, after the State and defence agreed, that the contents of the report not be disclosed to the public at this stage, as the defence needs to consult with their client.
Advocate Dali Mpofu had earlier told the court that he needed to consult with his client and may even call in experts if the defence wishes to dispute the report.
The case was postponed to July 13.