Pretoria - A 28-year-old mother accused of murdering her one-month-old baby, and abandoning the body in a river, has been released on R500.
Spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority in the North West, Henry Mamothame said Miemie Mokoena was released on Monday when she appeared before the Ga-Rankuwa Magistrate’s Court, north of Pretoria.
“The State did not oppose bail owing to the accused being cooperative and also having a fixed address. The investigating officer, through an affidavit further declared the accused not to be a flight risk,” said Mamothame.
“Mokoena allegedly called police to her home in Itsoseng phase 2, near Hebron on 26 June 2021 and registered a case of kidnapping. She allegedly told the police that two men armed with a knife and a firearm accosted her [at] her shack and took her baby away. The two were allegedly looking for her lover.”
Preliminary police investigations have revealed that on 27 June, a young girl walking past a small river in Hebron, spotted a body of an infant floating in the water.
The young girl then alerted community members, who later alerted the South African Police Service (SAPS).
“Upon conducting an intensive investigation, police went to interrogate Mokoena and she confessed to committing the crime. She is being charged for murder, perjury and defeating the ends of justice,” said Mamothame.
“Mokoena is expected to attend the court trial on her next appearance. The matter was postponed to 11 August 2021 for further investigations.”
Last month, a Limpopo mother was arrested for allegedly killing her newborn infant in a bathroom of a shopping centre in Malamulele near Thohoyandou in the Vhembe District.
In a statement police spokesperson Brigadier Motlafela Mojapelo said the 30-year-old mother allegedly committed the deed after she had given birth by herself in the bathroom.
“The suspect reportedly arrived at Kunjani Clinic in the morning accompanied by her mother. It is alleged she went to the clinic to consult and find out why her tummy was growing big. This after she allegedly denied she was expecting.
“While waiting for consultation, she allegedly indicated to her mother she wanted to go to the bathroom at the adjacent Masingita Mall. The suspect then reportedly gave birth to a baby girl on her own and started brutally assaulting her.”
Mojapelo added the baby’s cries alerted the cleaners who immediately rushed to the bathroom and discovered the gruesome incident.
African News Agency (ANA)