Lourentia Lombaard says she saw a white bakkie near Kelly Smith's shack day before Joshlin disappeared
Former accused, Lourentia Lombaard took the stand to testify on Thursday, briefly describing how she met Kelly Smith, Appollis and Van Rhyn.
Joshlin Smith’s mother, Kelly Smith (right), Jacquen Appollis, and Stevano van Rhyn in the Western Cape High Court, sitting in the Saldanha Bay Multi-Purpose Centre, on 12 March 2025. Picture: Carlo Petersen/EWN
SALDANHA BAY - A former accused in the Joshlin Smith trial, who turned State witness, made a brief appearance to testify in the case on Thursday.
Joshlin's mother, Kelly Smith, her boyfriend, Jacquen Appollis and his friend, Stevano van Rhyn, are on trial for the little girl's disappearance.
The accused face charges of kidnapping and human trafficking in the Western Cape High Court sitting in the Saldanha Bay Multi-Purpose Centre.
Former accused, Lourentia Lombaard took the stand to testify on Thursday, briefly describing how she met Kelly Smith, Appollis and Van Rhyn.
Lombaard told the court that she moved to Saldanha Bay from Worcester in 2017 before moving in with her boyfriend in Middelpos.
She said she met Smith and Appollis after she started using drugs and would often visit the couple at their shack, where they would use drugs together.
Lombaard told the court that the day before Joshlin disappeared, she was on her way to Smith when she noticed a white bakkie parked near the shack.
After experiencing difficulty in translating Lombaard's responses from Afrikaans to English, Judge Nathan Erasmus adjourned the matter to Friday for the State to prepare new questions for Lombaard.