SOUTH AFRICAN COURT SENTENCES WOMAN TO LIFE IMPRISONMENT FOR SELLING HER DAUGHTER
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In a case that shocked the nation, a South African court sentenced a woman to life in jail on Thursday for kidnapping and selling her six-year-old daughter.
Joshlin Smith has never been found since she vanished from her house in Saldanha Bay, a fishing community located 135 kilometres (85 miles) north of Cape Town, in February of last year.
Racquel “Kelly” Smith, her mother, was convicted of kidnapping the small girl and selling her for 20,000 rand ($1,100).
Smith, 35, and her two co-accused, a boyfriend and a mutual friend, were also sentenced to life in prison for human trafficking by Judge Nathan Erasmus.
For kidnapping, they were all given concurrent sentences of ten years in jail.
“I am also ordering the entry of your names to the child protection register,” Erasmus ruled.
Smith was present at the court and sat through the hour-long proceeding with an impassive gaze.
She was initially a figure of sympathy when her child disappeared, sparking a massive nationwide search operation.
Photos showing Joshlin’s striking green eyes, broad smile and brown pigtails flooded the internet.
The case drew national attention, including from a minister who offered who offered a one-million-rand ($54,000) reward for her safe return.
But it took a turn when prosecutors alleged that Smith sold her daughter to a traditional healer, who was interested in her eyes and fair complexion.
South Africa has one of the highest crime rates in the world and the kidnapping of children is on the rise.
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