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The Hawks in the Northern Cape have praised a vigilant bus passenger who alerted police about suspects possibly trafficking children to Cape Town.
Spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Tebogo Thebe says the woman saw two adults with 14 children aged between 6 and 12 who looked hungry, dirty and with no additional clothes or bags.
He says the bus was travelling from Johannesburg to Cape Town making a stop in Kimberley.
Thebe says the passenger phoned an off-duty policeman who organised for the bus the be searched.
Two Zimbabwean Nationals, 46-year-old Tafadzwa Otis Nakakurwa and 41-year-old Beulla Maruza told police they were taking the children to their parents in Cape Town.
Their version could not be verified and the duo was arrested.
They appeared briefly in the Kimberley Magistrates Court where they were remanded in custody until the 14th of December.
The eight boys and six girls were handed over to the Department of Social Development who provided them with food and a place of safety.
The Provincial Head of the Hawks in the Northern Cape Major General Steven Mabuela appreciated the information from the vigilant caller and the efforts of the off-duty police officer Sergeant Phumla Mpolokeng which led to the police’s timely intervention.
