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Accused kidnappers Piet van Zyl, Laetitia Nel and Tharina Human are seen during the Amy’Leigh de Jager kidnapping case.
Daan Vivier, Gallo Images, Netwerk24, archive
- Tharina Human, the former teacher accused of plotting Amy’Leigh’s kidnapping from Jager last year, intends to plead guilty.
- Amy’Leigh was kidnapped outside her school in Vanderbijlpark in September last year.
- Human’s father, Riaan Botha, said the family was relieved by his alleged guilty plea.
Tharina Human, the RR grade teacher accused of plotting the kidnapping of Amy’Leigh de Jager in Vanderbijlpark on September 2 last year, intends to plead guilty.
Human’s attorney, David Mey, confirmed this to News24.
Four men snatched Amy’Leigh from her mother’s car at Laerskool Kollegepark and drove off in a white Toyota Fortuner, News24 previously reported.
Police launched a manhunt while her distraught parents waited at the Vanderbijlpark police station for news.
Amy’Leigh was dropped off by her abductors between 02:00 and 02:30 on September 3 on a street near The Shakespeare Inn in Vanderbijlpark, after initially demanding R2 million for her release. A man and a woman took her to the Vanderbijlpark police station, where she was reunited with her parents.
Declaration agreement
Human, a former friend of the De Jager family, is one of four people accused of being involved in the kidnapping of the girl, who was 6 years old at the time and in Grade R. She allegedly orchestrated the kidnapping to pay a debt to the drug. distributors, News24 previously reported.
The trial was set for this week at Gauteng Superior Court in Palm Ridge, but was postponed to Thursday.
Mey said Human would plead guilty after signing a plea agreement with the state.
READ | Amy’Leigh’s mother opens up about kidnapping: ‘She can’t manage it, it’s been two months of hell’
One of his co-defendants, Laetitia Nel, also intends to plead guilty, but her case will be heard before a separate judge because her attorney, Stoffel Venter, intends to present evidence to mitigate the state’s proposed sentence, Mey said.
The other defendants, Pieter Jacobus van Zyl and Bafokeng Molemohi, are also expected to appear in court on Thursday. It is not clear how they intend to proceed.
According to the indictment, the four defendants allegedly violated the provisions of Article 18 (2) (A) of the Riot Demonstration Law and have been charged with kidnapping and attempted extortion.
The State alleges that on August 29 the defendant illegally conspired to kidnap the girl and subsequently did so on September 2. The accused allegedly threatened the girl’s father and demanded a ransom of R2 million.
READ ALSO | ‘There are sick people out there’ – teacher arrested for parents right after Amy’Leigh was kidnapped
Relieved family
Human’s father, Riaan Botha, told News24 that the family was relieved. “I am grateful that we can now put this behind us,” Botha told News24.
Botha said that due to the confinement, she did not have the opportunity to see her daughter in prison. She has been in custody since her arrest.
“Fortunately, I was able to see her [on Monday and Tuesday]. The Lord has blessed us with her mercy, “said Botha.
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