Itumeleng English/APThe man accused of being a fake sign language interpreter during Nelson Mandela 's memorial service was part of an angry mob who viciously attacked two men found with a stolen TV and burned them to death 10 years ago, according to a report.
A relative of Thamsanqa Jantjie and three of his friends told the Associated Press that the Johannesburg man was with the group when they put tires around the necks of the two men and torched them in 2003.
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But they said Jantjie - who claimed he had a schizophrenic fit while onstage with several world leaders, including President Obama, during the event at FNB Stadium last week - avoided persecution because authorities deemed him mentally unfit for trial.
Two other suspects went to trial in 2006, but the outcome was not immediately clear.
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The chilling details of the killings were revealed days after a South African news station found that the 34-year-old Jantjie's criminal history includes arrests for rape and murder.
In most cases, Jantjie avoided jail because of his mental illness, the station, eNCA, reported.
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Although the station reported that Jantjie faced murder and kidnapping charges in 2003, the files for the case were mysteriously empty.
Jantjie, a father of four, refused to comment about any of his arrests, but has acknowledged he has schizophrenia.
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He claims he was qualified for his job as a sign language interpreter, but that he couldn't concentrate during the Mandela ceremony - which was broadcast across the world - because he had visions of angels in the stadium. He said he was trying to control a violent outburst.
'There was armed police around me. If I start panicking, I'll start a problem,' he told the AP a day after the event. 'I have to deal with this in a manner so that I mustn't embarrass my country.'
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Officials said they are still investigating how Jantjie was hired.
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