Durban - Communites have lambasted the mother of the 1-month-old girl - allegedly kidnapped last week - for apparently being involved in the abduction. The abduction made international headlines on Friday.
The baby was strapped in her car seat in a white Toyota Yaris, parked near City View (Game City) shopping centre, when armed gunmen allegedly struck.
The 34-year-old mother and an 8-year-old child were reportedly forced out of the car, and the men drove off with the baby.
News of the hijacking circulated on social media, as hundreds of concerned people re-posted photographs of the car and baby in the hope of finding the little girl.
After an almost three-hour search, the car was found abandoned in Montclair, but the baby was missing.
WhatsApp groups were created to spread information about the incident and gather people for an extensive search from the area where the hijacking occurred to where the car was found.
Searches continued late into Friday night and on Saturday and prayer vigils were held.
The baby was eventually found when police intercepted a car near the Mariannhill Toll Plaza early Sunday morning.
While concerned people expressed relief the baby girl was safe, many were devastated and angry when it emerged that her own mother was one of three people arrested in connection with the alleged hijacking and kidnapping.
One accused is believed to be the mother’s boyfriend.
The third accused in the plot is a woman.
The suspects appeared in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Monday. A special prosecutor has been appointed to work with the police on the case.
Police had offered a R250 000 reward for information that led to the arrest and conviction of the people involved.
SAPS spokeswoman Brigadier Sally de Beer said police had deployed all the resources necessary to conduct a search for the missing child, and had been joined by organisations and the community.
“The search was intensified and further interviews were conducted with people of interest.
“Too many inconsistencies emerged during the interviews, especially in terms of the initial reporting to the police of how the incident developed.
Costs
“Information generated from the interviews became critical in the setting up of a roadblock in Mariannhill.
“A car was stopped by the police wherein a man, a woman and the baby in question were found, with the baby unharmed.”
De Beer said they could not give an estimate of the final tally of the resources and costs involved in the search.
“Police invested a lot in this case, including members working overtime, the use of vehicles and an aircraft, which impacted negatively on the availability of police resources in the fight against priority crimes.
“We would need to look at the vehicles used for the search and number of officers needed and the final amount will be determined in due course,” she said.
Prem Balram, of security company Reaction Unit SA, said he was overjoyed when he received a message saying the baby was found.
“We had taken this personally, especially because the baby was only a month old,” he said.
Balram, who was extensively involved in the search, said he was angry when he heard the mother was allegedly implicated.
“Our resources could have been used elsewhere, to save the lives of those in need.
“It was an absolute waste of our resources and all those hours,” he said.
Balram had used his helicopter and spent eight hours searching for the car and baby.
“On Friday we searched for five hours and on Saturday we searched for another three hours. It cost us between R35000 and R40000 for those two days.
“In addition, we used 10 reaction officers and eight of our cars.
“In total, we spent about R60 000 on this search,” he said.
Balram said he received a call about a swimmer in distress in Hazelmere while he was in Chatsworth on Saturday.
Drowned
However, they were unable to help because they were searching for the baby.
The swimmer drowned.
Rene Morcom, owner of the Thandi House Baby Home, started a Facebook group, Prayers For Durban Baby, after hearing that the child was taken.
The group, which has more than 3500 members, kept residents updated and allowed users to share prayers for the baby and her family.
Morcom said she was a “broken woman” when she heard about the little girl’s ordeal.
“I was walking around with tears flowing down my cheeks.
“We all experienced a flood of emotion in the past few days. As a mom, I could not bare the pain of having my child taken away from me in the manner that this innocent baby was taken,” she said.
Morcom added that while residents were angry, she believed no one’s time was wasted because the event brought so many people together.
Adeshini Naicker of Childline KZN said the State’s resources had been misused at a time when they could have been needed by someone else.
“The undue stress brought upon the family and especially the older sibling who witnessed the ‘hijacking’ was an occurrence that was not necessary,” Naicker said.
“We are concerned about the sibling’s state of mind after spending almost two days worrying about his baby sister’s wellbeing.
“One can’t help but wonder if the baby had proper care in the past two days,” Naicker said.
The accused trio face charges of hijacking and kidnapping.
More charges may be added later.
DJ Phat Joe (real name Majota Khambule), who hosts the East Coast Radio afternoon drive show, and who had pledged a R10 000 reward for information about the baby, said he was angered after putting in so much energy and effort into the search and sharing the mother’s grief.
He now planned to put his money where it could make a difference.
The Acting National Police Commissioner, Lieutenant-General Khomotso Phahlane, said “false claims of crimes which have an entire nation, and beyond, in a state of sorrow and anxiety, should be condemned”.
Meanwhile, the baby has been placed under the care of the Social Development Department.