Police appeal to parents to watch their children

Butterworth Police have appealed to parents to keep a close watch on their children following three children who went missing at the weekend.

All three were found some 100km away from home. Police spokesperson Captain Jackson Manatha said all three children who were reported missing by police on Friday were found unharmed.

A 19-year-old girl was found in Xhora on Saturday, while two siblings aged nine and 15, who went missing on Friday were found by the East London Fleet Street police on Sunday.

He said police were still investigating on how the children ended up 100km away from home.

“It’s very sketchy at the moment. We are still investigating how they got to East London. They are now safely in the hands of their relatives. The other girl was found in Xhora, we do not have any further details on how she also got there.”

Manatha said the minors were on their way to school when they disappeared. “They were supposed to have gone to school at Zizamele Township in Butterworth. They never arrived at school. They were seen at a taxi rank at Butterworth on Friday at the taxi rank used by the Centane taxis.”

He said: “Parents must please be on the lookout and watch their children. Our area is a small rural town and we are not used to these incidents of children going missing.”