A 25-year-old unemployed Parow Valley man, Jacobus van Schalkwyk, appeared briefly in the Bellville magistrate's court on Friday after a fire on Thursday which damaged the Tygerberg railway station.
Van Schalkwyk appeared before magistrate Jerome Koeries and asked for legal aid after his rights were explained.
Prosecutor Gertrude Magopene told the court Van Schalkwyk was seen walking around the station "trying to make a fire for himself because he was cold".
She said the damage caused to the station was estimated at R200 000.
The hearing was interrupted for about two hours while Van Schalkwyk applied for legal aid.
When the hearing resumed legal aid attorney Schearlton Cloete was appointed to represent Van Schalkwyk and the case was postponed to November 7 for a decision by the local directorate for public prosecutions.
Van Schalkwyk is also likely to launch a bail application on that date.
Prior to his appearance in court, Van Schalkwyk made a confession in the presence of magistrate Theo Marx. Details of the confession were not given in court but Van Schalkwyk will face a charge of arson.
Investigating officer Inspector Jonathan Morris said that Van Schalkwyk, using a cigarette lighter, allegedly first set fire to a caravan being used as a storeroom at the station.
He alleged that Van Schalkwyk left and went to a nearby Shell petrol station where he tried to start another fire. Only a petrol pump hose was damaged though.
Van Schalkwyk then allegedly returned to the station, where he set fire to crates and other refuse contained in an enclosure surrounded by wire, next to the ticket office.
Morris said Van Schalkwyk was not connected to any of the bomb blasts that have occurred in Gauteng. - Sapa