A Mother’s Nightmare: The Fight to Open a Case After a Child is Taken to Congo

A desperate Gauteng mother has taken to social media in a viral plea, accusing the Ivory Park Police Station of failing to act after her five-year-old daughter was taken to the Democratic Republic of Congo by her father without her consent. Her emotional video highlights a tortuous battle to simply have a kidnapping case opened, exposing gaps in the system meant to protect children.

According to the mother, the father, with whom she had a standing holiday visitation agreement, fetched their daughter on 17 December 2025. After promising to return the child before schools reopened on 14 January, he allegedly texted on 5 January to say they were “home… in Congo.” Panicked, she immediately went to Ivory Park police, only to be told she needed to consult the Children’s Court first.

A Maze of Referrals With No Case Number

What followed was a frustrating loop of referrals. The court directed her to a family advocate; her brother contacted the Department of International Relations (DIRCO), which confirmed a police case was necessary; social workers from the Department of Social Development gave the same advice. Yet, she claims, police still demanded more “proof,” even as she discovered the father had sold his belongings and allegedly planned to move to Europe with the child.

“I’m hoping this video gets to the correct people so that they can assist me because the Ivory Park Police Station is currently failing me,” she pleaded online.

Police Response: From “Enquiry” to Kidnapping Case

In response to the outcry, Gauteng police spokesperson Colonel Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi provided a different timeline. She confirmed the mother reported the matter and that the Family Violence, Child Protection Unit (FCS) initially registered an enquiry because the father had a history of taking the child during holidays and returning her. The FCS spoke to the father by phone, who promised to bring the child back before school.

It was only on 8 January, after the mother returned with information about the Congo trip, that the enquiry was escalated to a formal kidnapping case. Nevhuhulwi stated the FCS is now liaising with Interpol to trace the father and daughter and that the mother is being kept informed.

The conflicting accounts reveal a critical disconnect. For the mother, immediate danger demanded immediate action. For police, a historical arrangement seemingly warranted preliminary checks. The delay, whether procedural or perceived, has amplified a parent’s terror and eroded trust. While the wheels of international investigation are now turning, the case underscores a painful reality: in parental abductions across borders, every hour of bureaucratic hesitation can feel like a lifetime, and a child’s location becomes a continent away.

{Source: Citizen}

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