Girl, 3, ‘punished’ with chillies

Mom said sibling’s cigarette and hot iron burns were ‘accidents’

A-SELF-confessed drug addict, on trial with her Chatsworth mother for the alleged rape and murder of her 3 year-old daughter, has testified that she had twice witnessed the older woman rubbing chillies into the girl.

But the 31-year-old mother appeared emotionless as she was taken to task by state advocate Cheryl Naidu for apparently doing nothing to stop her.

The punishment, meted out because the child had messed herself, left the girl highly traumatised, the Durban High Court heard on Monday. She died on November 20, 2014. The two women have pleaded not guilty before Judge Mohini Moodley to all charges, including those of child abuse concerning the dead child’s 12-year-old brother and 9-year-old sister.

The mother testified that when she had attempted to stop the child’s granny from punishing her with green chillies in her private area, the older woman had pushed her (the mother) to the floor.

When she was questioned by Naidu whether she had tried to soothe the burning sensation by rubbing Vaseline or other ointments, she said she had not. “Why not?” asked Naidu. She replied her mother had stopped her from doing so.

When Naidu put it to her that she was more interested in herself than the welfare of her daughter, she eventually wilted, saying “yes”.

The acknowledgement came after she was asked why she had failed to take the traumatised child to either a doctor, hospital or clinic for a medical examination.

“The hospital (RK Khan Hospital) is far away from my mother’s home. I did not have R6 for a single taxi fare to the clinic,” she said.

Naidu responded: “You had money to buy drugs and chose not to have the child medically examined even though it was a serious child abuse act by your mother?”

It emerged during evidence that the child was separated from her mother and granny for about two months when she was under a year old.

The removal was triggered by a concerned policewoman, Captain Reena Naidoo, who before having the girl sent to a place of safety, warned the mother not to use the child as a pawn while begging on the streets of Durban and the beachfront.

The metro policewoman had warned her that she would report her to child welfare authorities, the court heard.

However, in a twist of fate the child’s granny obtained the green light from the Durban Magistrate’s Court to become the foster parent of not only the girl, but also her other siblings, including a 4-year-old.

The mother said that because she lived at a shelter near the beachfront she was forced to hand over the guardianship rights of her children to her mother.

“However, I never abandoned my children whom I loved very much. As a mother I would do anything for them. With the little money that I earned by buying and selling keyrings and other items I bought videos, toys, bread, milk and other items for them. I used to visit them at my mom’s home,” she said.

When the woman, represented by advocate Murray Pitman and attorney Ajith Severaj, was asked by Naidu what her response was to the in camera testimony of her son and 9 year-old daughter that she hated her dead child, she responded that it was not true.

“Somebody must have told them to say that,” she added.

Asked about her son’s cigarette burn when he was 5 and by a hot iron a few years later, she claimed these were “accidents”.

She said she did hit her children on their buttocks, shoulder and hand to discipline them, but claimed she was wrongfully charged.

Cross-examination was to have continued on Wednesday, after which the matter is expected to be adjourned to later this year.

It is believed that the granny has elected not to testify.

A-RAPED and murdered 3-year-old Chatsworth girl had been so badly emaciated that the bones in her caved-in rib cage were visible to the naked eye.

The detailed testimony was given in the Durban High Court last week by specialist forensic pathologist Dr Sibusiso Ntsele. Ntsele conducted the postmortem on the child at the Pinetown mortuary on November 24, 2014.

He referred for explanation to a series of pictures which were flashed on a big screen in court.

The girl’s death at her grandmother’s home in Chatsworth on November 20, 2014, triggered outrage across the country.

Her 31-year-old mother and 51-year-old granny are being tried for her murder, but they also face other charges, including rape and child abuse.

The child abuse charges also relate to the toddler’s siblings – a boy aged 12 and a girl aged 9.

The two accused women, who have pleaded not guilty, were expressionless as the post-mortem details were revealed in court.

Ntsele said the cause of death was blunt force head trauma following “fatal child abuse”.

He said the girl was so emaciated that this would have eventually proved fatal had her life being prolonged.

Because the girl severely lacked the necessary proteins and nutrients, her head was disproportionately larger than her body.

The doctor stood his ground under intense cross-examination by advocate Murray Pitman, instructed by attorney Ajith Severaj, who was representing the mother, and attorney TP Pillay of Legal Aid South Africa, acting for the granny.

Ntsele said the severe and sustained child abuse over a period of time would have ended the toddler’s life within six to nine months had she otherwise lived.

Asked by advocate Cheryl Naidu, who is leading the State’s case against the accused with advocate Kalvin Singh, what he meant by a “caved-in” rib cage, Ntsele responded that the child’s muscles had “wasted away”.

“She was subjected to chronic undernourishment.

“There were no signs of medical intervention. The child was abused on all parts of her body.”

He said there was a 60mm blood clot in her brain.

“Had she survived, the brain injury would have impacted negatively on the functioning of the rest of her body.

“The vast injuries she had were not caused by her falling off a bed or by other accidents. They were non-accident-related.”

According to the postmortem report, two of the girl’s upper front teeth were missing.

“For that to have happened she was either fisted or had other brute force exerted against her mouth.

“Brute force was also used against the child’s lower lip, and both nostrils had blood.

“There was a reddish round patch on her face close to the nose.

“That was caused by being burnt with a cigarette,” said Ntsele. Ntsele’s full findings:

The child had features of non-accidental childhood injuries with brain haemorrhage.

There were recent and old injuries on all body regions.

Two missing upper central teeth (incisors).

The girl’s private area was enlarged.

She had poor nutrition features and was emaciated. Other features: Prominent ribs. Depressions on the intercostal spaces. (In other words, the muscles had wasted away and there was no fat.)

Scapehoid (caved-in) abdomen.

Evident bony prominences: Zygoma (cheek) bones. Spinal column bones. Pelvic bones. Head – relatively big compared to the rest of the body.

Pitting oedema (swelling of the feet).

ecent and healed skin injuries involving all body regions. Head:

Abrasions – on the frontal and occipital bones, opening of the nasal cavities (nostrils).

Abraded bruises on the lower and upper lips.

Upper two incisors (teeth) and the frenulum (a fold of skin between the lip and the gum) were missing.

Superficial lacerations on both pinnae (ear lobes). Skull:

Had a 60mm blood clot. Neck:

Healed and fresh contusions on all sides of the neck. Trunk (body):

Old healed lesions at the back from the chest down to the pelvis area. Pelvis: Cylindrical recent superficial skin defects resembling cigarette burn mark or impetigo were observed in the privates area. Upper limbs:

Swollen left upper limb (from shoulder to the hand).

Bone crepitus (grating) was felt at the elbow joint.

Armpits comprised healed and recent superficial skin injuries. Lower limbs:

Recent bruises and linear abrasions were identified mainly on the legs.

Discoid (disc-like) 20 x 20mm bruises were seen on both ankles.

Healed lesions of approximately 30 x 20mm on the undersurface of both big toes.