After 17 days, Joshlin Smith is yet to be found. Her mother and boyfriend were two of the four persons who appeared in court on Thursday to face kidnapping charges while the search for her goes on.
Four people are accused of kidnapping and trafficking in persons for the purpose of exploitation: Jacquen Appollis, the boyfriend of missing Joshlin (6), and Racquel Chantel Smith, also known as Kelly.
On Thursday morning, the two made a brief appearance in the Vredenburg Magistrates’ Court alongside co-accused Steveno van Rhyn and Phumza Sigaqa.
Aradhana Heeramun, a seasoned attorney, has been assigned to handle the case by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).
Magistrate Theresa Posthma Received an Appearance From the Four Defendants.
“Count 1 trafficking in persons for the purpose of exploitation in that on or about 19 February 2024 to 5 March and at or near Tsitsiratsitsi, Middelpos, Saldanha, the accused, acting jointly and in the execution of furtherance of a common purpose, unlawfully and intentionally sold, delivered, and exchanged Joshlin,” according to the charges.
Regarding the kidnapping allegations, the State argues that around the same time, the accused forcibly and illegally restricted Joshlin’s freedom of movement to the point where the State is still unaware of her actual whereabouts.
Joshlin vanished from sight in Diazville, Saldanha, on February 19. Joshlin’s mother stated at the time that she hadn’t seen her daughter since she departed for work on February 19 at around eight in the morning. She left the young child in the company of Appollis, her boyfriend. Joshlin wasn’t home when she got back at around five o’clock, according to her.
Police resumed their hunt for the missing youngster on Tuesday, March 5, going to the Saldanha Bay garbage dump to go through more than 100,000 tonnes of trash.
A Step in the Right Direction
Reagen Allen, the Western Cape MEC for police supervision and community safety, stated after the court proceedings that they had made progress toward tracking down Joshlin or figuring out what had happened to her.
“We took note of the two specific charges pertaining to kidnapping and human trafficking on Thursday. We truly believe that the inquiry will shed light on Joshlin’s circumstances, but we are holding out hope since we still wish to locate Joshlin externally,” the speaker stated.
The children of Joshlin’s mother are among the two other siblings whose families are under the Department of Social Development’s care, according to acting MEC for Social Development Nomafrench Mbombo, who made this announcement to the media.
“Friday is International Women’s Day for me as a mother, and we are still dealing with this kind of problem, so I’m making an appeal that we can identify Joshlin and locate her. That’s all we want to accomplish, regardless of whether it arrives in the form of a body,” she stated.
When asked if there would be any more arrests, Western Cape Police Commissioner Thembisile Patekile responded, “Any possibility is possible as the investigation leads to more people being arrested, and if the investigation leads to that, we will do so.”
We don’t currently have a child. Finding the child is our ultimate objective in order to get closure. We still hope to discover the youngster alive as we pray. He continued, “We are pleading with everyone to help us locate this child.
“There is legislation in terms of the Cybercrime Act that a person can be charged for distributing false information, but that investigation is still ongoing,” Patekile said, threatening to use the force of the law to stop anyone attempting to obstruct the probe.
Patriotic Alliance TikTok influencers were ordered out of court on Thursday for not being members of the media. Ashley Sauls, a political influencer on PA TikTok, was granted permission to live record the events for TikTok following an extensive argument.
The defendants have declared their intention to obtain legal counsel. For information regarding bail, the case has been remanded to March 13.
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