In a case that has shocked South Africa, 35-year-old Racquel “Kelly” Smith has been sentenced to life imprisonment for trafficking her six-year-old daughter, Joshlin Smith. Her boyfriend, Jacquen Appollis, and their friend, Steveno van Rhyn, received identical sentences. Each was also handed a concurrent 10-year term for kidnapping. The sentencing took place in a sports center in Saldanha Bay to accommodate the local community, many of whom had participated in the search for Joshlin after her disappearance in February 2024.
Initially, Smith garnered public sympathy as a distressed mother of a missing child. However, testimonies during the trial revealed that she had sold Joshlin for approximately 20,000 rand (about $1,100) to a traditional healer, or “sangoma,” who allegedly desired the child for her “eyes and skin.” Witnesses, including a neighbor and a pastor, recounted Smith discussing plans to sell her children for ritualistic purposes
Joshlin is still unaccounted for despite a lot of search activity. Judge Nathan Erasmus stressed the seriousness of the offence and the defendants’ lack of regret when he handed down the punishment. He stated that drug use was no excuse for their actions and ordered all three to be added to the child protection register. The courtroom erupted in applause upon hearing the verdict.
The case has highlighted the growing concern over child trafficking and kidnapping in South Africa, with over 17,000 kidnappings reported in the 2023/2024 financial year. A reward of one million rand has been offered for information that leads to Joshlin’s return, and authorities have expanded their hunt for her outside of South Africa.
