A SICK mother who sold her six-year-old daughter “for her eyes and skin” has been sentenced to life in prison.
Racquel “Kelly” Smith, from South Africa, was jailed alongside two accomplices after being found guilty of kidnapping and trafficking.
Facebook/Gayton McKenzieKidnapped Joshlin Smith, 6, was never seen again after being sold[/caption]
AFPRacquel “Kelly” Smith has been jailed[/caption]
AFPJacquen Appollis, left, Smith’s boyfriend, and Steveno van Rhyn, right, were also jailed for life[/caption]
The trial heard that the child, Joshlin Smith, was sold to a traditional healer for her body parts and never seen again.
Smith’s boyfriend Jacquen Appollis and their friend Steveno van Rhyn were also jailed.
A witness said Smith had spoken of selling her children for 20,000 rand (£850) each.
Another testified that Smith had planned to sell the girl to a healer, called a “sangoma”, who wanted the child for her “eyes and skin”.
Joshlin vanished from her outside her home in Saldanha Bay, near Cape Town, in February 2024.
Smith claimed she left her child with her boyfriend when she went missing.
A desperate, highly-publicised search followed, with a minister stepping in to offer a one-million-rand (£41,400) reward for her safe return.
Her image was broadcast around South Africa.
But Joshlin was never found, and suspicion turned onto her mother.
It was claimed the healer was eager to acquire the child for her bright green eyes and fair complexion.
The trial verdict did not make any conclusions about who had purchased Joshlin – or what exactly happened to her.
Judge Nathan Erasmus, sentencing, said he “drew no distinction” between the twisted trio’s roles in the crime.
He sentenced each of them to life in prison on the human trafficking charge, and a concurrent 10 years on the kidnapping charge.
The depraved bunch showed no emotion as they learned their sentences outside the local community centre in Saldanha.
ReutersJoshlin Smith’s mother, Kelly appears in court in the case of the disappearance of her daughter from her home, at the Vredenburg Magistrate Court, in Vredenburg, Saldanha Bay, South Africa, March 7, 2024. REUTERS/Esa Alexander[/caption]
AFPAmanda Smith-Daniels, mother of unseen Kelly Smith and grandmother of missing child Joshlin Smith, sits in court in Saldanha Bay on May 29, 2025 where Kelly Smith and co-accused Steveno van Rhyn and Jacquen Appollis will receive their sentences after being found guilty of trafficking Smith’s six-year-old daughter who has been missing for more than […][/caption]
Thursday’s sentencing follows a six-week trial that rocked South Africa.
It was held in the family’s home town so that members of the community could watch.
Initially, there was an outpouring of sympathy for Smith.
Community members rallied around her and helped with the police search.
Saldanha Bay is a fishing town 85 miles north of Cape Town.
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