In 2019, a 33-year-old Gauteng woman was found guilty of burning her grandmother to death and burying her in the backyard.
Nomaswazi Rachel Tshabalala had already entered a guilty plea.
Tshabalala stated in court that he had no intention of causing disruption in Palm Ridge while testifying before the Gauteng High Court.
“When I went to see what was wrong, she started screaming at me, telling me I was making a fool of myself, that I was still living with my child’s abusive father, and that I should gather my belongings and go stay with him.”
Tshabalala claimed that her grandmother yelled at her until she left to get drugs.
When I got home from getting the drugs, I discovered the body storing my belongings in the kitchen. An altercation erupted as a result of her continued yelling at me. I picked up the calabash and delivered a solid blow to the head, knocking her out.”
Tshabalala insisted on continuing her drug use in her bedroom.
“I went back to her (grandmother’s) room and found her snoring” while high on drugs. I smothered her with my hands after she stopped struggling. My rage only grew after learning of her death. I returned to my smoking and eventually found her in the dining room, wrapped in a blanket. I was high on drugs at the time.
The truth about what happened to the elderly woman was finally revealed months after Tshabalala’s arrest on fraud charges.
While Tshabalala was in jail, a tenant cleaning the yard discovered the old woman’s body and called the police.
Mlungisi Buthelezi, Tshabalala’s attorney, objected earlier in the day to media requests to film the proceedings. ‘She’s crying, she’s terrified,’ her friend observed “Buthelezi stated the obvious.
After acting judge Samuel Makamu granted permission for media filming, Tshabalala announced that she no longer wanted her lawyer to represent her.
However, the acting judge denied Tshabalala’s request and warned her that obtaining legal representation through legal aid would be difficult.
Makamu went on to say that if Tshabalala fired her lawyer, she would be forced to represent herself or hire a private attorney.
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