By Daily Maverick | 2025-03-27

More than a year after Joshlin Smith’s disappearance, her mother, Racquel Smith, known as Kelly, on Wednesday denied that she sold her child to a sangoma or was part of a conspiracy to traffic her child.

Instead, she blamed key State witness Laurentia Lombaard and her boyfriend, Ayanda Letoni, claiming they were the masterminds behind the then six-year-old’s disappearance from the Middelpos informal settlement in Saldanha Bay on 19 February 2024. Smith’s version of events was read in court by her lawyer Rinesh Sivnarain after he completed his cross-examination of Lombaard in the Western Cape High Court, sitting in the Saldanha Bay Multipurpose Centre.

Following the statement, the silence in court became almost audible.

Lombaard, who is in witness protection, was grilled for four days by the defence for the accused and underwent episodes of dizziness several times, the most recent on Tuesday, 25 March 2025.

Despite inconsistencies in her confession made to the police on 15 March 2024 and her statement to win indemnity between 11 and 16 October 2024, Lombaard stuck to her guns that Smith allegedly had orchestrated the plan to sell Joshlin.

Father still hopeful
Community members who have been following the trial, which began before Judge Nathan Erasmus on 3 March 2025, have been horrified. They came to court hoping to hear what happened to Joshlin and where she could be, but now have more questions than answers.

Joshlin’s father, Jose Emke, was dismayed by Smith’s denial and expressed shock. However, he remained hopeful that the truth would be revealed in court.

“I live in the Northern Cape and cannot confirm if Kelly was involved or not. I’m still confident that my child will be found. I am also unable to comment on Kelly’s assertions that Ayanda and Lombaard were allegedly responsible for Joshlin’s disappearance,” he stated. Smith, with her boyfriend Jacquen Appollis and their friend Steveno van Rhyn, faces charges of human trafficking for exploitation and kidnapping.

The State contends that they “sold, delivered or exchanged” Joshlin. Lombaard has testified that Smith allegedly sold Joshlin for R20,000 to a sangoma.

The three have pleaded not guilty.

Lombaard was initially in the dock with the trio, but turned against them when she became a State witness.

‘I did not sell my child’
On Wednesday, 26 March 2025, after Sivnarain cross-examined Lombaard for three hours, Judge Erasmus instructed him to cut to the chase, leave out issues that had previously been addressed by the defence for Van Rhyn and Appollis, and explain his client’s version.

Sivnarain explained Smith’s version to Lombaard: “She denies that she told you that she sold her child, Joshlin, to a sangoma, and that there was ever a plan with anybody to do the offences; denies meeting anyone at a Polo and receiving anything, and particularly money.”

According to Lombaard’s evidence, on Sunday, 18 February 2024, Smith allegedly met a sangoma in a white VW Polo and allegedly received something from the sangoma, which appeared to be money. Smith then returned to her shack and allegedly told Lombaard that she did something “shit”. Lombaard claimed Smith told her that she was selling Joshlin to a sangoma for R20,000.

Lombaard has told the court that the person who bought Joshlin, who has fair skin and green eyes, “wanted her eyes and skin”.

Sivnarain said Smith denied seeing Lombaard on Monday, 19 February 2024, but Lombaard refuted this, indicating that she had been at Smith’s house that morning before going to work.

Smith also denies other aspects of Lombaard’s testimony, including:

That on 18 February 2024, she and Appollis had an argument;
That she packed Joshlin’s clothes in a black cooler bag before she was allegedly handed over to the sangoma;
That on Monday, 19 February 2024, there was a discussion about Joshlin’s drop-off time and location;
That she told Lombaard she would give her R1,000 and Van Rhyn R1,200 of the R20,000 she allegedly received for selling Joshlin.
According to Sivnarain, Smith further claims that on the evening of 19 February 19 2024, when she discovered Joshlin was gone, Van Rhyn allegedly informed her that Lombaard was the last person seen with Joshlin. Lombaard responded that this was a lie.

Lombaard also told the court that Smith was lying when she claimed she came to her house on the evening of 19 February 2024.

Smith said that the only possible reason for Lombaard to implicate her was to save her own skin. According to Sivnarain, Smith believed that Lombaard and Letoni were the masterminds behind Joshlin’s disappearance, which was one of the reasons Letoni abruptly left Saldanha Bay.

Read more: State’s key witness in Joshlin Smith case falls ill under questioning, again

Lombaard said Smith’s version was a fabrication and that Smith and Appollis planned Joshlin’s disappearance.

‘A new life’
Lombaard has openly admitted to being a regular drug user and said that she formed a bond with Smith over their mutual drug use.

After a lengthy cross-examination, Judge Erasmus asked Lombaard if she was still the same person as “Renz” – the nickname Smith and her other friends know her by – who regularly used drugs before Joshlin’s disappearance.

“She is not the same person. I’m finished with everything and want to start a new life,” Lombaard told the court.

State prosecutor Zelda Swanepoel asked Lombaard if she would go along with the plan to sell Joshlin if she were confronted with the same situation.

She replied, “No, my lord.”

The judge also asked if Lombaard had received any help for her drug addiction and if she needed it. She responded no, but the judge noted that while Lombaard was under witness protection, she might discuss it with the authorities.

The court also heard that Lombaard last saw her children a year ago.

On Lombaard’s further appearance at the trial, Judge Erasmas told her she need not attend further proceedings and that she would be informed whether her indemnity application would be granted, thus avoiding prosecution.

The trial continues. DM

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