Durban - A rape victim’s testimony about the bizarre behaviour of her attacker during the three days that she was held captive and repeatedly raped was proof that convicted former Blue Bulls player and convicted axe murderer Phindile Joseph Ntshongwana was insane.
Ntshongwana’s advocate Themba Majoli made this assertion in the Durban High Court on Monday in a bid to obtain leave to appeal against Ntshongwana’s conviction and his sentence.
Ntshongwana was convicted of four murders and a rape and sentenced by Judge Irfaan Khalil to five life terms in December last year.
Ntshongwana killed Thembelenkosini Cebekhulu in Montclair on March 20, 2011, Paulos Hlongwa two days later, Simon Ngidi the following day, and an unidentified man some time that week.
All were hacked to death with an axe. Two of the victims were beheaded.
He was also charged with attempted murder for attacking two men, one in Umlazi on March 21, 2011, and the other in Lamontville on March 23.
He also raped and kidnapped a woman. He took the woman to his home in Yellowwood Park.
During her testimony the court heard how, during her three day ordeal, Ntshongwana had accused her of being unfaithful, even though she was not his girlfriend.
The court heard that he also asked her what it was like to have sex with “a Xhosa boy”, made her lick yoghurt off him and then accused her of infecting his daughter with Aids, even though he does not have a daughter.
“The complainant testified to the behaviour of a mentally sick person. He is seriously mentally sick,” Majoli told Judge Khhalil on Monday.
He said that Khalil had erred and selectively looked at the evidence and that the rape victim was the best witness of Ntshongwana’s mental health. He said the woman, who legally cannot be named, was a good witness.
“She was not making up the evidence as bizarre as it was. It has not been proven beyond a reasonable doubt that he was sane when committing that crime,” argued Majoli.
Majoli pointed out that the defence had never contested that the offences, as gruesome as they were, had been committed by Ntshongwana.
He said the court had also ignored the fact that Ntshongwana had not taken his medication and had prior to the crimes been certified as being mentally ill.
During the trial, Khalil had ruled that the former Blue Bulls player was fit to stand trial and then when he convicted Ntshongwana he found that he was fully aware of what he was doing, especially as Ntshongwana had attempted to hide the evidence of his crimes.
Majoli said that his client needed to be treated and not imprisoned like a normal criminal.
“Our prisons were meant to be prisons and not facilities for mentally ill people.”
Advocate Nadira Moosa, arguing for the State, said that Khalil’s judgement was a comprehensive one.
She pointed out that the onus was on the State to prove that he was guilty of the crimes, which it had done. But that when insanity was claimed the onus shifted.
“The onus is then for the accused to show that he lacked criminal responsibility.”
She said that all Ntshongwana’s defence team had shown was that he had suffered a mental illness. They had failed to prove he was not criminally responsible, she said.
Judge Khalil is expected to hand down his decision on Tuesday as to whether he will grant leave for Ntsongwana to appeal his conviction and sentence.
ANA