A South African court sentenced a woman to life for kidnapping on Thursday for kidnapping and sold her six-year-old daughter in a case that horrified the country.
Joshlin Smith disappeared in February from last year to his home in Saldanha Bay, a fisherman’s town 85 miles north of the Cape, and has never been found.
His mother, racquel “Kelly” Smith, was found guilty of having removed and sold the girlApparently for 20,000 rands ($ 1,100).
Judge Nathan Erasmus ruled that Smith, 35, and his two co -accused – a common boy and friend – were also imprisoned for life for human beings.
They were all sentenced to a simultaneous 10 -year imprisonment sentence for kidnapping.
“I also order the entry of your names to the child protection register,” said Erasmus. “There is nothing that I can find who bought and deserves a lower sentence that the hardest I can impose,” he said.
Erasmus said that the fact that Smith and his two co-accused were drug consumers was no excuse, reported the reuters news agency.
Smith was present in court and sat down through the one hour procedure with an impassive look.
Sumaya Hisham / Reuters 
The judge said that the mother of three was manipulative and had shown “any indication of remorse” or concern about the disappearance of Joshlin.
The verdict attracted applause in the courtroom.
Joshlin’s grandmother was also present in court in a white shirt sporting images from the girl.
Sumaya Hisham / Reuters 
Dramatic turns after Joshin disappeared
Smith was initially a fighness of sympathy when her child disappeared, causing a massive national research operation.
Photos showing the striking green eyes of Joshlin, a large smile and brown mats flooded the internet.
The case drew national attention, including a minister who offered a reward of one million rands ($ 54,000) for his return safely.
But it took a tour when the prosecutors alleged that Smith had sold his daughter to a traditional healer, who was interested in his eyes and his just complexion.
The judge did not say in his decision to whom the girl was sold or why.
The witnesses of the trial, which started in March, understood the teacher of the girl and a pastor, who said that the mother had told him about the scheduled sale of her child in 2023.
Police said Thursday that they had extended the search beyond the borders of South Africa.
South Africa has one of the highest crime rates in the world and the kidnapping of children is increasing.
There were more than 17,000 kidnappings in South Africa during the year 2023/2024, an increase of 11% compared to the previous year, according to police statistics. The data do not specify the ages of the victims.
