East London - A 24-year-old man has been arrested at Butterworth for carrying a human head in his luggage at a bus rank in the Eastern Cape town on Saturday, said police.

Captain Jackson Manatha said the man was arrested about 11:00 after a tip-off.

The man had already been on a bus when police found him and was taken to the police station where a human finger was found in his pocket.

During questioning, the man told police he was going to Cape Town and his luggage was still on the bus.

"Police chased the bus to Ndabakazi station.

"The man was ordered to fetch his luggage and when he opened it an old woman's head and her two arms were found," said Manatha.

"It is alleged the man murdered his 85-year-old grandmother on Friday by cutting her throat like a goat in a village near in Butterworth."

People in the area became suspicious when someone saw the man pulling "something" towards a secondary school about 10pm, said Manatha.

Another villager saw the headless body at the school about 06:00 on Saturday.

"He (the villager) saw the woman's clothes with blood on them at the toilet and the naked body was inside a deep hole next to the toilet," said Manatha.

The man was due to appear in Butterworth magistrate's court on Monday.

A similar case was reported at Butterworth in 1981 when a man tried to sell a human head to a funeral parlour, said Manatha.

Ref: News24