Missing for 529 days: What’s next in the Joshlin Smith investigation?

As police pursue leads in the Joshlin Smith case, the nation awaits potential sanctions against the State’s star witness in two weeks.

This follows searches conducted in the Middelpos informal settlement in Saldanha on July 25, based on untested information. Joshlin, now seven, disappeared on February 19, 2024, while living with her mother, two siblings, and her mother’s boyfriend in a shack in Middelpos

While police were tight-lipped on the new lead they were following, they assured the public that Joshlin’s disappearance remained a priority in the Western Cape and that the investigation was never closed. 

“SAPS teams led by detectives with K-9 members, search and rescue teams, and local police have been scouring an identified area in Saldanha Bay. Whether the ongoing search will yield any success remains to be seen. It is worth reiterating that police have an obligation to follow up and test all information that is brought to their attention,” police said. 

Speaking to IOL, Candice van der Rheede, Director and founder of the Western Cape Missing Persons Unit (WCMPU) said this lead is not new. 

“We told the investigating officer (the first officer, Sergeant Meyer Milstein Vredeburg Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) Unit), that Kelly was looking for a portable toilet that week Joshlin went missing. We had a witness come forward, but instead, they treated our witness like a criminal. The witness worked at the site. Kelly asked him where the portable toilets were that had been removed,” she said. 

WCMPU has been pivotal when searching for missing persons across the Metro and has worked closely with authorities to solve cases. 

“We told him, but he ignored it. Why would one be looking for a specific portable toilet?” van der Rheede asked. 

When IOL reached out to police regarding an update after their search, the provincial police spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Malcolm Pojie, said: “There is no new development to report. Joshlin is still regarded as a missing person. All leads and information will be pursued”. 

During the landmark trial, the State relied on former accused turned state witness, Laurentia Lombaard’s testimony to seal the deal. 

Lombaard admitted to originally being part of the conspiracy after she heard Kelly’s plan to sell Joshlin for R20,000.

On May 29, Joshlin’s mother, Kelly Smith, her boyfriend Jacquen ‘Boeta’ Appollis, and their friend Steveno van Rhyn were sentenced to life imprisonment plus 10 years for trafficking in persons and kidnapping.

Last month, it was revealed that Kelly and her co-accused will be appealing their sentences in the Western Cape High Court on August 12 and 13. 

The court is also expected to decide with regard to Lombaard’s indemnity and her involvement in the commission of the crimes that led to the convictions and sentences handed down.

Joshlin has been missing for 529 days. 

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