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- Four people were stopped in their tracks by the police for allegedly planning to perform a ritual on a child they had kidnapped in KwaZulu-Natal.
- The suspects, aged 17 to 79, will appear in the Durban Magistrate's Court on Monday.
- The four-year-old was playing with other children at Dayal Road sports ground when an unknown man called her over and walked away with her.
Four suspects, aged 17 to 79, have been arrested for allegedly kidnapping a four-year-old girl in Durban on Friday.
They were reportedly planning to perform a ritual on her in rural Nkandla on Saturday.
The suspects will appear in the Durban Magistrate's Court on Monday facing a charge of kidnapping.
Brighton Beach police arrested them in Durban's largest township, Umlazi, on Saturday.
The child has since been reunited with her mother.
KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson Colonel Thembeka Mbhele said she was abducted while playing with other children at Dayal Road sports grounds.
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"According to the victim's friend's [mother], they were playing at Dayal Road sports ground when an unknown man, who was sitting not far from where they were playing, called them to come nearer and play next to him."
Mbhele added eyewitnesses saw both the victim and the suspect walking away.
She said the child's mother was called by a neighbour at around 13.40 while at work, informing her they had spotted an unknown man walking with her daughter.
She was shocked to hear the news as the child's father was in Malawi, added Mbhele, saying a kidnapping case was opened at Brighton Beach police station and a search team was immediately formed.
"After an intensive investigation by the team, the child was found at Q Section in Umlazi. The victim was found unharmed and reunited with her mother."
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Mbhele said all four suspects were immediately arrested and taken to the Brighton Beach police station for further processing.
"It is further alleged that the suspects were going to leave at 06:30 this morning to Nkandla to perform a ritual with the child."
She declined to reveal the gender of the other suspects or describe the type of ritual that was going to be performed on the child.
Mbhele added the police team was commended for their quick response which led to the arrest of suspects and the recovery of the missing girl.
