By Kaya 959 Reporter
A Soweto man accused of murdering his lover, cutting up her body and keeping it in a freezer, is due to undergo mental observation.
Flavio Hlabangwane appeared in the Protea Magistrate’s Court on Monday.
NPA spokesperson Phindi Mjonondwane says “the court was informed that the accused attempted to take his life on two occasions, hence the application for his mental state to be examined”.
The court ordered that Hlabangwane be detained at the hospital section in Johannesburg Correctional Services as he may require medical attention and/or special care, Mjonondwane says.
Magistrate David Mhango ordered for him to be placed under observation at the facility. Hlabangwane is due back in court at the end of the month.
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Gruesome discovery
Hlbanagwane faces a charge of murder and Contravention of the Inquest Act for failing to report the body of the deceased to authorities, the NPA adds.
The accused has been in custody at the Moroka SAPS station.
Earlier this month, Soweto residents were shocked to learn of the gruesome find in the 26-year-old man’s room.
It is alleged that a woman he had met on social media had stayed over at his place.
The woman reportedly wanted to prepare something to eat when she opened the freezer and found the body parts.
The accused had gone to the shop during this time. An investigation later revealed that the body belonged to Hlabangwane’s former lover.
SAPS spokesperson Brigadier Brenda Muridili says Hlabangwane had been renting a room in a yard.
She says that a human skull was found next to Glen Ridge, Westernaria Road (R558). Police have linked the skull to the murder case.
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