The man accused of faking sign language interpretation at Nelson Mandela's memorial has said he was suffering from hallucinations at the time. South African minister Hendrietta Bogopane-Zulu said an investigation was underway into the incident.
A South African minister has admitted "a mistake happened" in the hiring of a "fake" sign language interpreter at the Nelson Mandela memorial service, the Associated Press reports.
Deputy Minister of Women, Children and People with Disabilities, Hendrietta Bogopane-Zulu, said an investigation is underway to determine how Thamsanqa Jantjie received a security clearance.
She also said that government officials have tried to track down the company that provided Mr Jantjie but that the owners "have vanished into thin air."
Mr Jantjie, who has been accused of 'faking' sign language at the service, has apologised for his actions and said he suffered a "schizophrenic episode".
Having just met the sign language interpreter from Mandela's memorial, his explanation that he had a schizophrenic attack seems plausible.
Deaf organisations have complained after the man translating the speeches at Nelson Mandela's memorial service 'signed gibberish'.