Boy (9) missing over a month
Parents are urged to be responsible for their children and to educate them on the dangers not only in their homes but in their community and surroundings.
Police and the family of Lwenkosi Khumalo (9), from Msinsini in Mtwalume, who has been missing since August 31 are appealing to the community for assistance in finding him
His uncle Sbonelo Khumalo said Lwenkosi came home after school on the day he disappeared, changed his clothes and had something to eat before going out to play with his friends on the road.
“Lwenkosi has been living with my sister and her husband. His mother died some years ago, and my sister took guardianship of him. It’s alleged that he was seen by a group of boys at a nearby sports ground days after he went missing and we also heard that he was seen near the Umzumbe River by men who went there to bathe. They say he was sitting on a rock near a forest. The community together with the Saps K9 Unit searched the forest but did not find him,” said Khumalo.
He added that he spoke to Ward 13 councillor Goodenough Doncabe who arranged a meeting with the Induna in the area for another search last Tuesday, but he was not found.
According to a source, Lwenkosi sometimes isolates himself and stays in the forest, however he does return home.
The chairperson of non-profit, Women of Mtwalume, Nombuso Sibisi said she found it strange that Lwenkosi has still not been found after more than a month. She said the pattern of children going missing in the Mtwalume area is shocking and stressful.
“What is even more disturbing is that when the children are found, they are either dead or have been sexually assaulted. I hope that he is found alive and unharmed. I urge the community to continue helping the family search for him. I am calling on mothers or women to be more active in these searches as this can happen to any child including theirs,” said Sibisi.
“Provincial Saps spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda has also called on the community to contact Detective Captain Zelda Hamilton on 079 6963711 or 039 699 1601 or Crime stop on 08600 10111 with any information on the whereabouts of Lwenkosi.
Dawn Gounden, a missing persons expert from Renegades Search and Rescue, said minor children are often left without any adult supervision, which leads to kidnappings and opportunities for child traffickers and predators.
“Children often become victims of ritualistic killings which in recent years have become a known criminal offence. Children with mental health issues often cannot understand the dangers and leave home. This becomes a greater threat to them because they cannot communicate when placed under duress or cannot understand their identity. Human trafficking is real in South Africa, it’s not strangers that only pose a threat to innocent children but persons known to them.”
Gounden advised parents to be responsible for their children and to educate them on the dangers not only in their homes but in their community and surroundings.
“The best interests of our children are of paramount importance as there should be no boundaries when child safety is concerned as all children should be treated equally,” she concluded
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