Chaos ensued during the pretrial hearing of alleged parliament arsonist Zandile Mafe as he made a startling confession in court.
WATCH: Zandile Mafe admits to torching Parliament
Mafe, who appeared at the Western Cape High Court on Thursday, admitted to intentionally setting fire to Parliament.
He proclaimed his readiness to accept a life sentence, expressing his desire to be incarcerated from 2023 until 2043.
As the proceedings commenced and Mafe entered the courtroom, he suddenly erupted with an outburst, unequivocally declaring his responsibility for the arson attack.
In addition to his confession, he made controversial remarks targeting the Democratic Alliance (DA) party, claiming they are killers and murderers who should not be allowed in Parliament.
He also expressed a desire to see the relocation of Parliament to either Bloemfontein or Pretoria, suggesting that white people should bring back land to black individuals.
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Judge Nathan Erasmus, understanding Mafe’s medical condition, chose not to interrupt him during his impassioned statements. Acknowledging Mafe’s ongoing battle with schizophrenia, the judge stated that he did not want to exacerbate his condition.
Mafe faces multiple charges, including housebreaking with intent to commit terrorism, arson, and theft.
He has been in custody since 2 January 2022.
It is worth noting that Mafe’s initial psychiatric assessment, which concluded that he had schizophrenia, was deemed unlawful. This pretrial hearing was anticipated to reveal the outcome of a second evaluation conducted on Mafe.