Durban - A 35-year-old woman is expected to appear in the Mtubatuba Magistrate's Court to face child abduction charges after she allegedly abducted a newborn baby girl from her 18-year-old mother, KwaZulu Natal police said on Wednesday.
Police said that on Friday, the young mother from Mfekayi, boarded a taxi from Hlabisa Hospital to Mtubatuba town, near Richards Bay, after having given birth at the hospital. It is alleged that a woman in her thirties who was sitting behind the mother, requested to carry the one-day-old baby. The mother agreed as the woman appeared to be sympathetic.
According to police spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Thulani Zwane, on their arrival at the Mtubatuba taxi rank, the woman asked the mother to buy airtime from a nearby shop and promised to wait for her. On her return from the shop, the mother realised that the woman and her newborn baby were nowhere to be found. The matter was reported to Mtubatuba police station for investigation and the docket was transferred to the KwaMsane FCS Unit for further investigation.
On Monday night, the Mtubatuba community proceeded to Makhambane area after receiving information of a woman who was found in possession of a newborn baby.
After the baby was found, the suspect was positively identified by the mother of the stolen baby as the same person who stole her child. The suspect was charged with kidnapping and will appear in the Mtubatuba Magistrate's Court on Thursday. The baby was taken to a health facility for a check-up. Police appealed to parents to take extra precautions when dealing with strangers.