Joshlin Smith — agonising wait continues for family as case is ...

Relatives of six-year-old Joshlin Smith, who has been missing for almost three months, gathered at the Vredenburg Magistrates’ Court on Monday hoping to get an answer about her whereabouts. 

Monday marked 84 days since the child disappeared.

A large number of Patriotic Alliance (PA) supporters were bused in. They came dressed in T-shirts showing an image of Joshlin and chanted, “Bring back our child”. They were there to listen to PA leader Gayton McKenzie, who arrived hours after court proceedings began.

Joshlin went missing on 19 February in Middelpos, Saldanha. Her mother, Racquel Smith – better known as Kelly – says the last time she saw her daughter was when she left for work at 8am that day. She said she left her child with boyfriend, Jacquen Appollis. Joshlin was missing when Smith returned home at about 5pm.

Smith and Appollis, along with co-accused Steveno van Rhyn and Lourentia Lombaard, face charges of kidnapping and human trafficking in connection with Joshlin’s disappearance.

Patriotic Alliance supporters outside the Vredenburg Magistrates’ Court with T-shirts displaying pictures of missing Joshlin Smith. (Photo: Vincent Cruywagen)

All four have abandoned their bid for bail and Lombaard has reportedly made a confession. The National Prosecuting Authority and the police remain tightlipped about the contents of that confession.

Read more in Daily Maverick: Fourth suspect in critical Joshlin Smith disappearance case ditches bail application

Prosecutor Aradhana Heeramun told the court that the matter was on the roll for an update on the progress of the investigation.

“The investigation is ongoing. The State has received a forensic report and cellphone data and they are busy being analysed. When the investigation is finalised, the (Vredenburg Magistrates’ Court) will be advised of the forum where the trial will be heard,” she said.

Joshlin’s grandmother, Rita Yon, told the media: “I’m very disappointed that the case has been postponed, but what can I do? I so much wanted to hear on Monday where Joshlin is.

“Last week I visited Kelly at Pollsmoor (Prison) and asked where Joshlin was. Kelly told me she doesn’t know anything. She just asks how her other two children are doing.”

Meanwhile, local pastor Amanda Hendricks told Daily Maverick that Mother’s Day was unlike previous occasions.

“I had a difficult Mother’s Day because I was thinking of whether Joshlin was eating, does she sleep, do they look after her – and if she is still alive,” she said.

Western Cape MEC for Oversight and Community Safety Reagen Allen was unhappy with the postponement, saying that on day 84 of the disappearance of Joshlin, “we again saw that the wheels of justice turn extremely slowly”.

“But we have to allow the court process to run its course, while SAPS is given the space to complete their investigation, particularly into the cell phone data that is currently being analysed.

“It is a difficult time for residents of Saldanha and the Western Cape, considering that this particular case has ultimately placed missing persons front and centre within our province. We are still hoping that Joshlin will be returned and found unharmed,” he said.

Allen painted a grim picture of the missing persons reports handled by SAPS since 2019.

“We can confirm that there have been 1,328 missing persons reported since 2019, with 573 cases closed and 755 ongoing.

“When we engaged further with regard to the number of cases before court and how many convictions, we were informed that since 2019 to date, it is only two cases before court and only two convictions,” he said.

Bianca van Aswegen, national coordinator of Missing Children SA, said there are no statistics available for all of South Africa. The police last released figures in 2013, indicating that one child went missing every five hours, she said.

“We have noticed an increase in the number of cases reported each year, particularly to our organisation, which is cause for great concern. Many cases go unreported because people are in rural areas or unable to get to police stations, or because families are too scared to approach the police, such as in kidnapping cases.

“So stats only give a general indication of what we are facing with children going missing in our country.”

Van Aswegen emphasised that everyone, not just parents and guardians, should educate themselves and teach their children about safety precautions.

“It is not the responsibility of us as an organisation, or that of SAPS, to keep children safe. Safety starts at home with parents and guardians,” she added.

She stressed that there is no waiting period to report a child or a person as missing. Some people are still under the impression that they have to wait 24 hours – that isn’t the case. The sooner a case gets reported, the sooner action can be taken, she told Daily Maverick.

Last week, false reports emerged about a fifth suspect being arrested. These claims, made by PA leader Gayton McKenzie, were dismissed by Western Cape police.

Political parties and communities have expressed concern that the PA was using Joshlin’s disappearance as a political tool to gain support in Saldanha.

ANC West Coast regional secretary, Immanuel Adams, said “the ANC was part of the case since the beginning, and what we’ve seen is that some political parties, such as the PA, have used it as political propaganda to boost their votes.

“The ANC is here to show solidarity with the missing child and does not see this as a political opportunity to gain votes. We are here because of social injustices, not political agendas. What we see here in large numbers with some people from outside the area is a demonstration of their solidarity with the PA.”

Veronique Pretorius, a Good Party councillor, told Daily Maverick that political interference in this case was wrong, and that it was obvious the PA was using the Joshlin case to gain votes.

“Initially, all political parties collaborated in their search for Joshlin. But later we realised the PA were looking for votes, not for Joshlin,” she said.

Eric Ntabazalila, Western Cape NPA spokesperson, confirmed that the case had been postponed for further investigation.

“That report is likely to be available during the next appearance. If the investigation is completed, a decision will be made as to which court the trial will be held in.” 

When asked about the contents of Lombaard’s confession, he said the NPA could not comment, but that such details would only emerge once the trial began.

Ntabazalila said the priority was to find Joshlin, and, if that failed, to successfully prosecute the accused. 

The matter continues in the Vredenburg Magistrates’ Court on 15 July. DM