Clothes of boy missing since 2011 found

The family of a boy who went missing in 2011 have identified his clothes, which were found near a human skull.

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Kimberley - The family of a missing boy, Tshepang Kaduka, 4, on Monday identified his clothes, which were found near a human skull in an unused drain near the abandoned Valspan community hall in Jan Kempdorp.

A group of children found the skull inside the drain after their soccer ball rolled into the sewer last week.

Four-year-old Tshepang disappeared on August 14, 2011.

Community members in the area said that it was strange that while the bones were already starting to disintegrate, the clothing - consisting of a red tracksuit top and matching pants along with a second pair of denim pants and a pair of white takkies - were still intact.

The rest of the bones - including the jaw bone, spine, leg and arm bones - have not been retrieved, while eyewitnesses had apparently noticed horizontal and vertical cracks on the skull, which do not point to blunt force trauma.

They added that if the boy had fallen into the drain, someone would have heard him screaming for help.

A resident, Frans Moshweng, who was summoned by the children when they found the skull, pointed out that it was strange that only parts of the skeleton were found.

“The skull was found at the far end of the drain and if the boy had fallen in, one would assume that he would have been found at the nearest point of entry,” said Moshweng.

Tshepang’s mother believed that the skull could belong to her missing son.

“My motherly instincts tell me that it could be him, although I do not want to believe it. I am hoping with all my heart that he is still alive,” she said.

A relative indicated that Tshepang was last seen on August 14, 2011 at around noon playing with his friends at his aunt’s house.

“She stayed at a house in close proximity to the community hall. They used to play soccer outside while the other children practiced gumboot dancing inside the hall.”

She stated that an extensive search was launched for Tshepang with the use of police sniffer dogs.

“No clues were found and no one knows what happened. The uncertainty makes it very difficult and it would be easier if we knew what happened. We will wait for the outcome of the forensic autopsy because perhaps we are grieving for someone else’s child.”

“He would have turned eight years old this year and would have been at school or playing with his friends. He went missing soon after his fourth birthday and was wearing the red tracksuit and takkies that were found in the drain, although we did not recognise the pair of denims.

“It is too painful for us to celebrate his birthday because it is a constant reminder that he has been gone for another year. We cannot think anyone would want to harm such a small, innocent child.”

Police spokeswoman Lieutenant Andrea Cloete stated that the police were still busy with the forensic investigation and DNA analysis.

“The human remains will be sent to our laboratories in either Cape Town or Pretoria and it may take a few months to finalise the report,” she said.

DFA

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