Africa-Press – South-Africa. The worried family of a missing 13-year-old girl from Bethelsdorp, Gqeberha, is petrified they may never see her again after she disappeared without a trace almost two weeks ago.
Hasalusha Blaauw, affectionately known as Lusha, was last seen on 21 July when she left her home to visit a friend’s house in the same street, and never returned home.
The Grade 8 pupil’s mother, Raylene Blaauw, prays daily for her safe return.
Describing Lusha as a beautiful young girl, with a kind heart, Blaauw said her daughter had always been somewhat shy and quiet.
“She does not say much, but she is passionate about so many things, especially when it comes to shopping. We always have our mother and daughter shopping sprees,” she said.
According to Blaauw, her daughter had never disappeared before and always made her way home by 18:00 every day.
Blaauw said:
She said that, since her child’s disappearance, it had been a painful waiting game, which she tried to conquer with prayer.
“I pray and ask the Lord to grant me strength and keep me hopeful each day because I cannot fall apart.
Blaauw said she had no idea where her daughter may be, adding that there was no reason why she would just disappear.
When she went to the friend’s house to look for her daughter, the family said they saw Lusha on the day she disappeared, but they didn’t know where she went when she left their house.
“I just want to tell her that I love her and want her back home,” a heartbroken Blaauw said.
She added that she had been so stressed that she even struggled to enter the police station to open a missing person’s report that weekend.
She said:
Eventually, though, she did manage to open a case.
Blaauw said Lusha’s disappearance hit the family hard.
“Her little sister has been asking for her repeatedly.”
Blaauw said that, as a family, they were trying to stay positive.
“I just know that, wherever she is, she is safe. I have to believe that because that is what keeps me going.”
But Lusha is not the only one who has vanished into thin air in recent weeks.
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Another teenage girl in Gqeberha went missing after last being seen on 20 July.
Amanda Kasiyamungi, 14, left her house in Sidwell, in her school uniform, and never returned.
She was reported missing at Algoa Park police station the next day.
Another missing woman is presumed dead, and three others had still not been found.
Rushdeen Killian, 13, from Despatch, didn’t make it back to Oosterland Children’s Home from school last Friday.
Goosain Sathorat, 15, from Kariega, disappeared after telling his grandmother he was job hunting.
Both boys were found unharmed the next day.
Still missing, though, is Melody Dendere, 43, from Motherwell, Gqeberha.
On 17 July, she replied to a text message sent by her son, but that was the last time she was heard from.
For Lucas, who left her home in Walmer Location to sleep over at her aunt’s house two weeks ago, the disappearance turned into a tragedy when her beaten and partially burnt little body was found in an abandoned house in the area.
An individual was arrested in connection with the Grade 2 pupil’s murder this Wednesday.
A second missing person was found dead in Gqeberha last week. The body of Janine Swartz, 47, was found in an open field with multiple gunshot wounds last Friday.
She was reported missing by her family when she left a friend’s home last Monday and was never seen again.
In the case of missing Ayanda Dupa-Emenaha, 35, many questions still remain unanswered. When she left her place of work in Central, Gqeberha, last Sunday, and dropped off a co-worker in Rink Street, she was never seen again.
Her white Toyota Etios was found abandoned on the old Coega Road in the early hours of Monday morning, 24 July. Approximately 30 metres away, a body, burnt beyond recognition, was found.
A DNA test still has to be conducted to find out whether the body is that of Dupa-Emenaha.
The Eastern Cape’s police spokesperson, Colonel Priscilla Naidu, confirmed there was indeed an increase in missing cases reported at the metro’s police stations.
“These are mainly teenagers, between the ages of 13 and 18, and other people between the ages of 50 and 56,” she said.
“In the majority of these cases, the teenagers walk out and only return a few days later. However, others do not return, as some of these cases are criminal-related.”
Naidu said it was important for the families of missing people to report the cases to police immediately.
“There is no waiting period to report a person missing. It is important for parents to have contact details of friends and parents whom the children frequently visit.
She said:
According to Missing Children South Africa, the best thing the families of missing children can do is to not panic and not wait 24 hours before filing a report.
The organisation said it was imperative to immediately contact the police and have a clear, identifiable photo of the missing child ready.
“Give a good description of what the child was wearing, their last whereabouts and any information that can help the police. Complete as SAPS 55 (A) form which safeguards the police against false or hoax reports and gives them permission to distribute the photo.
“Also ensure that the police give you a reference number as well as the name and contact details of the investigating officer.”
Anyone with information on the whereabouts of the missing people can contact Crime Stop on 08600 10111 or go to the nearest police station.
All information is confidential, and callers may remain anonymous.
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