There was chaos at the Vredenburg Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday as hundreds of people arrived for the appearance of four suspects arrested in connection with the disappearance of Joshlin Smith.
Police fired stun grenades and teargas as mense tried to breach a barbed wire barricade around the court.
The six-year-old girl’s mother, Kelly, her boyfriend Jacquen Appollis, their friend Stevano van Rhyn, and Phumza Sigaqa made their second appearance after they were charged with trafficking in persons and kidnapping.
However, the State withdrew the charges against Sigaqa, who has been accused of being a sangoma, while the other three decided to abandon bail.
Their arrests came after one of the accused allegedly confessed to police that Joshlin was kidnapped and sold for R20 000.
Outside court, Sigaqa’s family denied that she was a sangoma and said their lives had been turned upside down since her arrest.
Police have yet to find the missing child from Diazville.
Joshlin was in the care of Kelly’s boyfriend, Appollis, when she went missing from her home in the Middelpos informal settlement on 19 February.
On Wednesday, chaos erupted outside the court as police refused to let politician Ashley Sauls, aka Oom Biza, inside the courtroom.
Angry Saldanha Bay residents tried to remove the barricade, forcing police to use stun grenades and teargas to disperse the crowd of over 1 000 people, who then retaliated by throwing rocks, injuring a 29-year-old police officer.
Of the three groups protesting, one group was chanting “Biza in” while the other shouted: “Where is Joshlin?” and the third group held up placards that read “Free Phumza” and they also chanted: “That b***h Kelly, is taking us for a p**s, she sold her child.”
Police Oversight and Community Safety MEC, Reagen Allen, condemned the violence outside court.
Allen says: “I think what happened outside of court has to be condemned. A 29-year-old female constable had to be taken to hospital due to the violence that was outside court.
“I can already see a conversation with the police, that we will be analysing the video footage and the people throwing stones will be held accountable. That officer could have lost her eye.”
Provincial Police Commissioner, Lieutenant-General Thembisile Patekile, said they have opened a case of public violence.
Patekile says: “The people were unprovoked by the police and they started attacking the officers. Whoever was responsible will pay for it. We understand the anger of the people, we will speak to the court and NPA [National Prosecuting Authority].”
Meanwhile inside court, the State revealed that they would be withdrawing charges against Sigaqa due to a lack of evidence.
Sigaqa’s aunt Monica Bontswayo said the mother of three’s life has been uprooted.
Bontswayo says: “Yesterday after she was released, she had to move from the area because it is no longer safe for her and the children. We fear that something will happen if she stays.
“We were very shocked when we heard that she had been arrested because she had never been in jail and also that she was accused of such charges.
“We don’t know why she was arrested, but we knew all along that she had nothing to do with this case. She is innocent.”
NPA spokesperson, Eric Ntabazalila, said there was insufficient evidence against Sigaqa.
He said if the other three accused decide to apply for bail later, the State will oppose it.
Ntabazalila says: “The State requested for the case to be postponed for further investigation as there is more information that has come up about the whereabouts of Joshlin Smith.
“Investigators still need to take down some witness statements and conduct data analysis of cellphones of the accused.
“The case will return to court on May 13.”