Polygraph tests and chilling confessions: ‘Kelly would never sell Joslin for money’

Western Cape police said on Wednesday morning that they were “questioning four individuals as part of an extensive investigation into the disappearance” of the six-year-old Joslin Smith from Diazville in Saldanha Bay on the West Coast. 

South African Police Service (Saps) spokesperson Brigadier Novela Potelwa confirmed that two men and two women, aged between 26 and 34, have been taken in for questioning. 

Joslin Smith latest: Four suspects in police custody

“It’s envisaged that as the investigation unfolds, light will be shed as to her whereabouts or what happened to her. The four people being interviewed by the team of investigators are two men and two women aged between 26 and 34. With the investigation gaining momentum, arrests are on the cards,” said the Western Cape police spokesperson.

The four suspects will appear in court on Thursday, 7 March.

Shock confessions

The latest update was issued by the police after the now two-week-long search for the Grade 1 Diazville Primary School pupil took a dramatic turn when two men allegedly confessed on Tuesday evening that they sold Joslin for muti.

Netwerk24 reported that sources close to the investigation claimed the suspects revealed in their chilling confessions that they sold Joslin to a Middelpos man for R20 000.  

Claims of ‘drug debt’

Ever since the launch of a massive search operation – which intensified over the weekend to also feature the South African Navy – speculation has been rife as to whether the girl’s mother, Kelly Smith, and her boyfriend, Jacquin “Boeta” Appollis, played a role in her disappearance.

Joslin’s biological father who lives in Springbok, Jose Emke, told  IOL last week that he suspects his daughter’s disappearance was likely linked to “drug debt” he claims was racked up by Kelly and Appollis who have openly admitted to being tik (crystal meth) users.

Contradiction versions: What really happened on that fateful day to Joslin?

• The green-eyed girl with the sunny smile went missing on 19 February while in the care of Appollis.
•  Kelly claims she left Joslin with her boyfriend because she had to go to work and her daughter was not feeling well.
• However, when she returned from work, neither one of the two was in their hut in the informal settlement. On his return, Appollis could not account for Joslin’s whereabouts though.
• In an eNCA interview, he however contradicted Kelly’s version with his claim that he was “home all day” and that the child went to play at another house.

ALSO READ: Two men claim in grim confession they sold Joslin Smith for muti

Community questions mother’s absence in search for Joslin

As the search for Joslin continued unabated on Tuesday – despite the discovery of bloodstained clothes, a knife and a sheet in a nearby field on Saturday evening – community members questioned the glaring absence of Kelly and Appollis during the search.

According to News24, community members are once again pointing fingers at Kelly, telling the publication that they are convinced she was one of the four people in police custody.

‘These kind of rumours are distasteful’

Family spokesperson, Zulpha Cupido, however, vehemently denied that the 33-year-old mother of three would sell one of her children.

“Kelly would never sell her child for money. These kind of rumours are distasteful,” she told the publication.

Cupido said Kelly was taken to the Saldanha Police Station on Monday night for her own safety. 

Are Kelly and her boyfriend in police custody?

On Tuesday evening, eNCA veteran journalist Annika Larsen on whose TV show – My Guest Tonight with Annika Larsen – former Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter made bombshell claims about the power utility, posted on X that Kelly and Appollis were both in police custody.

• The claim, however, was not officially confirmed by police at the time of publication.

Police have confirmed #Joshlin Smiths Mother, Mothers boyfriend and daughter a third woman are in custody for the disappearance of the Saldanha 6 year old. Its alleged she was sold for R20 000. All 3 to appear in court on Thursday . #Joshlin remains missing .

— Annika Larsen (@AnnikaLarsen1) March 5, 2024

ALSO READ: Police urge responsible social media usage as search for Joslin Smith intensifies

Searching for Joslin: PA leader speaks his mind about Kelly and boyfriend

Patriotic Alliance (PA) leader Gayton McKenzie has taken an interest in Joslin’s disappearance and has been actively involved in searching for the missing girl alongside community members.

In a follow-up Facebook Live post of the politician’s 27 February interview with Joslin’s mother, he said that he doubts Kelly’s claim that she and Appollis have stopped abusing the drug for a week.

She said they were clean for seven days, which I personally doubt. Because when you’re clean, you go cold turkey. Tik is not an easy thing to leave

“She was totally fine, which tells me that is not the behaviour of someone who has gone off tik.”

Tik and polygraph tests

He then referred to the polygraph tests which the couple recently passed, questioning the accuracy of the results.

“I’m mentioning this because when you take a lie detector test, and you’re high on drugs, it messes with the system because your pulse and heart rate is not correct. I don’t think that the lie detector test should be conclusive. A polygraph test and a drug test do not mix.”

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