MBOMBELA – A Facebook post purportedly of a missing child, elicited a sympathetic response from social media users. The post was published on April 30 and read, “Princess Amahle, I want you to know that since you were stolen away from us, people everywhere have been searching, praying and hoping for your safety and for answers. I wish for every child who is home safe today, that they will never have to endure abduction or sexual exploitation of any type. Help us #FindPrincessAmahle, Missing since April 6, 2019. – at Ka Daantjie Pienaar.”
Subsequent attempts by Lowvelder to contact the publisher of the post to ascertain whether a missing person’s report had been filed in connection with the child’s disappearance were unsuccessful. Mpumalanga police spokesman, Brig Leonard Hlathi looked into the matter and said he was not aware of any missing person’s report being filed with the SAPS in connection with her disappearance.
Hlathi said, “As the police, we would like to discourage people from spreading false news on social media, because this places a strain on the police. “We are obliged to respond to such issues and we have to use our resources to check on the validity of such claims.”
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He added that, apart from putting a strain on law enforcement resources, this causes widespread panic and fear in communities. Hlathi cited a similar case when the rumour mill went into overdrive regarding a black Mercedes-Benz which was allegedly kidnapping young children in the province. Police investigated the claims and their probe into the allegations revealed that the rumours were baseless.
“There were no children reported missing in Mpumalanga during that period, even in the areas that were mentioned. We urge the public to refrain from doing those things for the benefit of themselves and the community,” he said.
The steps to take to report a missing person are quite simple and communities should be well versed in how they should go about doing so. Missing persons should be reported to the police as soon as it becomes apparent that they are unaccounted for. There is no 24-hour waiting period to report a missing person.
A report can can be lodged at the nearest police station or you may contact the Bureau for Missing Persons. Once at the police station, provide a recent photograph of the person and give police a description of the clothing worn at the time of their disappearance, as well as their last-known whereabouts and any distinguishing features which could assist police to find the person.
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Fill out and add your signature to a SAPS 55 (A) form, which protects the police from hoaxes and gives them the right to distribute the photo and information of the person reported missing. Once this is done, you will need to obtain the investigating officer’s contact information in order to communicate any new information.
If the person is found, police should be alerted without delay. A SAPS 92 form must be completed so that the Bureau of Missing Persons can remove the missing person’s report from circulation.
