Three adults face life sentences for selling six-year-old Joslin Smith to a sangoma. Kelly Smith, Jacquin Appollis, and Steveno van Rhyn were found guilty of kidnapping and human trafficking. Joslin disappeared from her Saldanha Bay home in February 2024. Her mother, Kelly, reported her missing that same evening. The Western Cape High Court heard evidence that the trio had planned this crime for months.
Dr Marcel van der Watt testified from America about human trafficking cases. He called their actions calculated and planned months before Joslin vanished. The expert said Kelly Smith decided to sell her daughter in August 2023. Court records indicate that the planning process took several months to complete. Van der Watt works without payment for his court testimony.
Lourentia Lombaard helped prosecutors understand what happened to Joslin. She revealed that Kelly Smith sold her daughter for R20,000 cash. Lombaard admitted to staying quiet because of fear and drugs. She also received R1,000 for keeping the secret. The court will decide her punishment separately from the other three.
Judge Nathan Erasmus will announce sentences on Thursday, May 29th. The trial started in March 2024 at the Saldanha Bay courthouse. All three defendants could receive life imprisonment under trafficking laws. Kelly Smith never testified during the trial proceedings. Her silence and behavior suggested she knew what happened to Joslin.
Dr Marcel van der Watt testified from America about human trafficking cases. He called their actions calculated and planned months before Joslin vanished. The expert said Kelly Smith decided to sell her daughter in August 2023. Court records indicate that the planning process took several months to complete. Van der Watt works without payment for his court testimony.
Lourentia Lombaard helped prosecutors understand what happened to Joslin. She revealed that Kelly Smith sold her daughter for R20,000 cash. Lombaard admitted to staying quiet because of fear and drugs. She also received R1,000 for keeping the secret. The court will decide her punishment separately from the other three.
Judge Nathan Erasmus will announce sentences on Thursday, May 29th. The trial started in March 2024 at the Saldanha Bay courthouse. All three defendants could receive life imprisonment under trafficking laws. Kelly Smith never testified during the trial proceedings. Her silence and behavior suggested she knew what happened to Joslin.
