South Africa: Man Accused of Beheading Grandmother Claims Temporary Insanity in Court

Thabo Ntokozo Nzimande, charged with beheading his 80-year-old grandmother Beatrice DeLange and kicking her head like a soccer ball on June 7, 2024, told Durban High Court on Tuesday he likely suffered temporary insanity or delusion, with no memory of the Pinetown killing.

Under cross-examination, Nzimande said he took five sleeping pills and smoked marijuana that day to rest for overtime work, but they failed despite usually knocking him out in 15 minutes. He denied prior tensions, including a May argument where he allegedly called DeLange a “crazy old b*****” over drug tests, or her refusing his rehab sessions.

Prosecutor Nadira Moosa challenged inconsistencies in his “voices” story: Nzimande claimed hearing his late mother praising him with deceased relatives, not ancestors ordering the kill as he told uncle John Ngcobo. He couldn’t recall telling Ngcobo “I had to do that” while holding the head, shouting to Constable Chili about ancestors demanding he kill his loved one, or earlier instructions like “you know what to do.”

Nzimande suggested confusion or “freakiness of hearing voices.” The case resumes in June