CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — A South African woman went on trial Monday charged with kidnapping and selling her young daughter in a case that gained national attention.

Kelly Smith is charged alongside her partner and another man over the disappearance of her daughter Joshlin more than a year ago. Joshlin, who was 6 when she disappeared, is still missing following a nationwide police hunt.

Smith — whose full name is Racquel Chantel Smith — was charged with kidnapping and human trafficking. Prosecutors alleged she organized the abduction of her daughter in return for payment with the help of her partner Jacquin Appollis and friend Steveno van Rhyn.

All three defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges as the trial opened in a sports hall in the small coastal town of Saldanha Bay. The trial was moved to the hall to give members of the community an opportunity to attend.

Smith won sympathy across South Africa in the early days of Joshlin’s disappearance and neighbors joined together to help police search for the child in sand dunes near the impoverished settlement of shacks and small houses where they lived. Smith claimed she left Joshlin with Appollis on the day she went missing in February 2024 and hadn’t seen her again.

The case took a shocking twist when police took Smith in for questioning and later arrested her. Another woman who was arrested was not charged and is reportedly due to testify as a state witness.

Prosecutors said in the indictment that Smith had been planning to sell Joshlin and her two other children since August 2023. Only Joshlin went missing. They also alleged that Smith and Joshlin were seen getting into a white vehicle with a bag of clothes the day the girl was reported missing.

The case has provoked anger in the community. Crowds gathered outside the sports hall, chanting “We want Joshlin back,” according to local media reports.

Judge Nathan Erasmus said the three defendants could face life in prison if they are found guilty.

AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa