Cape Town - Police have taken more people in for questioning concerning the disappearance of 6-year-old Joshlin Smith of Middelpos, Diazville, Saldanha.
The girl’s mother, Kelly, and her boyfriend Jacquin Appollis on Thursday underwent a polygraph test facilitated by Patriotic Alliance leader Gayton McKenzie.
“The mom and boyfriend passed the lie detector test,” McKenzie said.
He spent yesterday trying to find those implicated in Joshlin’s disappearance.
She had been in the care of Appollis when she went missing on Monday, February 19.
Kelly told McKenzie that she returned home that afternoon and her boyfriend was with Steveno van Rhyn.
“I told him to get the gas can and then I noticed Joshlin wasn’t at home. When I asked, he said she was around the area, playing.”
She initially told the police that when she got home that afternoon around 5pm, neither Joshlin nor Appollis were at home.
McKenzie discovered that there were three people who were with Joshlin in the hour before her disappearance, apart from her mom and Appollis.
A woman implicated had reportedly sent the 6-year-old to check on her children at her home.
No one knows what happened after that.
On Wednesday McKenzie spoke to Van Rhyn, who said: “We smoked a quarter button. The woman got up and asked Joshlin to check if her other child was still sleeping in another hokkie. She left and then both of them were never seen after that.
“Kelly came home past 5pm and she didn’t look for Joshlin yet, and smoked tik.
“Past 7pm she started looking for Joshlin.”
Police spokesperson Malcolm Pojie said they would not distribute information as this could jeopardise the case.
“We are not at liberty to divulge our investigation methodology to the media or for public consumption as it can hamper ongoing investigation and furthermore, in this case, it poses a potential safety risk to those involved.”
“At this stage we can confirm that the mother and her boyfriend are not the centre of our investigation.
“No specific suspects have been identified as persons of interest. The investigation continues.”
mandilakhe.tshwete@inl.co.za