Baby who went missing from crèche in Meadowlands found in Randfontein

Every day in South Africa children go missing, but some are lucky enough to be found and reunited with their loved ones.

This is the case with Nqobile Peterson, who went missing on August 19 while she was still at Pro-Kid Day Care Centre situated in Meadowlands Zone5, reports Soweto Urban.

The one-year-old was wearing a blue and white striped T-shirt and blue jean when she went missing.

It is alleged that someone called the Day Care Centre, pretending to be Nqobile’s grandmother and told them that Nqobile will be fetched by someone else. After a few hours of searching for the one-year-old without any luck, the principal and grandmother went to the Meadowlands Police Station to open a missing persons case.

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Grandmother of the toddler Rowena Peterson said the person who took Nqobile had done her research.

“We went to open a case of a missing child and they told us to come back after an hour. After few hours of searching for Nqobile without any luck, the principal recalled that there was a number that called at creche and claimed that the child will be fetched by someone else and we decided to trace the number.”

She said that the person who called the creche arrived at her home and denied the allegations.

“She denied everything, and later on she confessed that she took the toddler to her boyfriend’s place,” said a relieved Rowena.

Nqobile was found in Randfontein, where she was dressed differently, and her identity was changed. It is alleged that she was left with a male who claimed that Nqobile was his child.

“The suspect claimed that she has been friends with Nqobile’s mother during her pregnancy and even after the child was born. What amazes me is that this girl would come to check up on us and we took her as one of us because she spent most her time with Nqobile’s mother, and we didn’t know what are her intentions,” said Peterson.

“I still fear for the innocent children that are reported missing every day and not found but we are grateful that we found Nqobile and we are thankful to every individual that helped us to find our child.”

Meadowlands Police Communications Officer Octavia Thebe confirmed that a case of a missing person was opened.

“The suspect was detained, appeared at court and was given free bail,” she added.

Thebe added that investigations are still underway.

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