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| Joshlin Smith's mother, Kelly, jailed for kidnapping and selling her in South Africa | Joshlin Smith's mother, Kelly, jailed for kidnapping and selling her in South Africa |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| Kelly Smith refused to testify in the six-week trial | |
| A South African woman convicted of kidnapping and trafficking her six-year-old daughter has been sentenced to life in prison, along with her two accomplices. | A South African woman convicted of kidnapping and trafficking her six-year-old daughter has been sentenced to life in prison, along with her two accomplices. |
| The jail terms for Racquel "Kelly" Smith, her boyfriend Jacquen Appollis and their friend Steveno van Rhyn's come more than a year after Joshlin Smith mysteriously disappeared outside her home in Saldanha Bay, near Cape Town. | The jail terms for Racquel "Kelly" Smith, her boyfriend Jacquen Appollis and their friend Steveno van Rhyn's come more than a year after Joshlin Smith mysteriously disappeared outside her home in Saldanha Bay, near Cape Town. |
| Despite a highly publicised search for the girl, who vanished in February 2024, she is yet to be found. | Despite a highly publicised search for the girl, who vanished in February 2024, she is yet to be found. |
| The sentencing follows a six-week trial that captivated South Africa, with witnesses and prosecutors making a number of shocking allegations. | The sentencing follows a six-week trial that captivated South Africa, with witnesses and prosecutors making a number of shocking allegations. |
| Judge Nathan Erasmus said he "drew no distinction" between the trio in handing down the sentences. | Judge Nathan Erasmus said he "drew no distinction" between the trio in handing down the sentences. |
| "On the human trafficking charge, you are sentenced to life imprisonment. On the kidnapping charge, you are sentenced to 10 years imprisonment," he said to loud applause in the courtroom. | "On the human trafficking charge, you are sentenced to life imprisonment. On the kidnapping charge, you are sentenced to 10 years imprisonment," he said to loud applause in the courtroom. |
| Smith, 35, and her accomplices showed no emotion as their sentences were read out in the community centre in Saldanha where the trial was held to allow local residents to attend proceedings. | |
| Tears and heartbreak over tragic story of Joshlin Smith | |
| Emotions were high ahead of the sentencing, with angry community members saying the trio should get a "harsh sentence because they deserve it". | Emotions were high ahead of the sentencing, with angry community members saying the trio should get a "harsh sentence because they deserve it". |
| Ahead of sentencing, Joshlin's grandmother, Amanda Smith-Daniels, once again pleaded with her daughter to "bring my [grand]child back or tell me where she is". | |
| "I don't feel that any sentence they get will bring my grandchild back," she told local broadcaster Newzroom Afrika. | |
| Ms Smith-Daniels said that Joshlin's disappearance had left her family "broken". | |
| She urged her daughter to stop blaming others for her misfortune as she "was the person that did the deed". | |
| During the trial, the court heard testimonies from more than 30 witnesses, who painted a picture of the young girl's troubled life and subsequent disappearance. | |
| Kelly Smith and her accomplices refused to testify or call any witnesses for their defence. | |
| The most explosive came from Lourentia Lombaard, a friend and neighbour of Smith who turned state witness. | |
| Ms Lombaard alleged that Smith told her she had done "something silly" and sold Joshlin to a traditional healer, known in South Africa as a "sangoma". | |
| The "person who [allegedly took] Joshlin wanted her for her eyes and skin", Ms Lombaard told the court. | |
| A local pastor testified that in 2023, he had heard Smith - a mother of three - talk of selling her children for 20,000 rand ($1,100; £850) each, though she had said she was willing to accept a lower figure of $275. | |
| Joshlin's teacher then alleged in court that Smith had told her during the search that her daughter was already "on a ship, inside a container, and they were on the way to West Africa". | |
| It was the testimonies of Ms Lombard and the clergyman that were key to securing a conviction. | |
| During sentencing hearings, Smith was described as manipulative and someone who told "bald-faced lies". A social worker appointed to compile a report on Smith and her accomplices, went so far as to say it would not be a "stretch to conclude that [Kelly] Smith is the mastermind behind the trafficking of her own daughter". | |
| The court also heard powerful statements from those who knew Joshlin about the devastating effect of her disappearance on the community. | |
| More South Africa stories from the BBC: | |
| Joshlin Smith's disappearance spreads fear in South Africa's Saldhana Bay | |
| 'The selfie that revealed I was a stolen baby' |