Almost two years since the disappearance of six-year-old Joshlin Smith from Saldanha Bay, her family says they still believe she will be found alive, even as her mother and two others are serving life sentences for her trafficking.

Joshlin vanished on February 19, 2024, from her home in Middelpos, Diazville, while in the care of her mother’s boyfriend, Jacquen “Boeta” Appollis.

Her mother, Racquel “Kelly” Smith, later told police she had left the six-year-old at the time with Appollis while she went to work, but when she returned, her daughter was gone.

The disappearance sparked one of the largest community searches ever witnessed in Saldanha Bay.

Residents scoured beaches, bushes, and abandoned buildings, joined by drones, K9 units, and police task teams.

The case gripped the nation, but as weeks passed, suspicions began to turn closer to home.

On March 5, police arrested Smith, Appollis, and their friend Steveno “Steffie” van Rhyn, charging them with kidnapping and human trafficking.

Another accused, Lourentia “Renz” Lombaard, later turned State witness, telling the court how Smith had allegedly sold Joshlin to a sangoma for her skin and eyes.

Lombaard was granted full immunity on August 13, 2025, three months after the trio’s conviction, and remains in witness protection until it is safe for her to reintegrate into society.

The trial began in March 2025 at the White City Multipurpose Centre, which was converted into a High Court venue to accommodate the intense public and media interest.

Testimony revealed how misinformation and rumours on social media had hampered the investigation.

State advocate Zelda Swanepoel argued that Joshlin had been “treated like a commodity” in what became a landmark human trafficking case, even though her body has never been found.

In May, Judge Nathan Erasmus delivered his judgment, finding Smith, Appollis, and Van Rhyn guilty and sentencing them to life imprisonment.

In his ruling, Erasmus said the case had exposed the harsh reality of human trafficking in South Africa.

Despite the convictions, Joshlin’s paternal grandmother, Lauretta Yon, said she has not given up hope.

“I must believe that she is still alive because we didn’t get her body. She cannot be dead, so if we don’t have a body, the search must still continue. I’m positive that Joshlin is alive,” she said.

Yon recalled visiting Smith in Worcester Correctional Centre to ask what had happened to her granddaughter.

“I asked her what she did with my grandchild, and she told me she doesn’t know what happened to her. She denied having anything to do with selling Joshlin.”

She said her granddaughter’s younger sister, Rochelle, who now lives with her father in the Northern Cape, often asks about Joshlin.

“She talks about Joshlin all the time. She knows Joshlin is her sister, and she knows that she is gone,” Yon said.

Western Cape Police Commissioner Lieutenant-General Thembisile Patekile confirmed that the investigation remains open and active.

“We are searching internationally, and we keep going back to prison to ask those convicted about where we can find Joshlin,” he said.

Patekile revealed that police had recently returned to Saldanha Bay with K9 units after receiving new information, but the search yielded no results.

“We will continue searching for her. The investigation into her disappearance continues,” he said.

For Yon and the rest of the family, that persistence brings some comfort. “I know the police are still working tirelessly to find her. I hope they will find her soon,” she said.

While justice has been served in court, for Joshlin’s family, Yon said closure will only come when she is found.

mandilakhe.tshwete@inl.co.za

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