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Two people have appeared in court for allegedly abducting a baby in Potchefstroom last week.
- Two people have appeared in court for allegedly abducting a baby in Potchefstroom last week.
- They allegedly tricked the mother into thinking they could get her a Sassa scholarship.
- When the mother went into a store to buy food, they allegedly left with the baby.
Two people accused of abducting a 4-month-old baby earlier this month appeared in Potchefstroom Magistrates Court on Monday.
Adalia Ncebeshe, 31, and Hendrik Kokoene, 49, will remain in custody.
READ | Cape Town Woman Arrested After Sister’s 7-Month-Old Baby Kidnapped
According to police spokesman Colonel Adéle Myburgh, the baby’s 20-year-old mother allegedly met Ncebeshe at a grocery store in Ventersdorp.
Ncebeshe allegedly informed her that he was from the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) and offered to help the mother obtain a Sassa scholarship for her baby.
On November 4, Ncebeshe allegedly went to the mother’s house to look for her.
The mother, baby and Ncebeshe got into a taxi from Ventersdorp to Potchefstroom. When they got to Potchefstroom, the three got into a waiting red Toyota Tazz, driven by Kokoene.
“They drove down Potchefstroom and stopped at a cafe near Potchefstroom Hospital and asked the mother if she wanted to buy something to eat. The mother left her baby in the vehicle and went into the store. When she left the store, the Tazz and the occupants, including their baby, were gone, “Myburgh said.
The information was tracked by the Potchefstroom Family Violence, Child Protection and Sex Crimes Unit, and on the night of November 5, Kokoene was tracked down and found in Ikageng, outside Potchefstroom, while Ncebeshe was allegedly found with the baby in Rustenburg.
They were arrested and the baby was returned to his mother unharmed.
They will appear in court again on November 18 to request a formal bond.
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