Mother of critical girl, 2, located

The mother of the two-yearold girl in a critical condition after apparently being beaten and dumped at the Motherwell Clinic, has been located.

The alarm was raised on Friday afternoon when police appealed for assistance in finding a woman who dumped the child at the Motherwell Clinic on Monday last week.

The original police information was that the woman said the child’s name was “Mazi”, and then ran off.

Due to the severity of the child’s head injuries, the clinic transferred her to Dora Nginza Hospital and she is still on life support.

Police spokesperson Captain Andre Beetge said the mother, 24, had been found, with the friend who dropped the girl at the clinic, after an extensive search.

The child lives in Wells Estate with her mother, who reportedly left the girl with a friend when she went out.

“The mother claims that the child was not in her care at the time of the incident,” he said.

“The mother had allegedly gone to visit her mother and had left the child with a friend nearby – a family friend who often takes care of the girl.”

Beetge said it was apparently the mother’s friend who had taken the child to the clinic, and then left in a panic to find the mother.

“They both went back to the clinic and claim that they were then sent to Dora Nginza and Livingstone hospitals.

“It appears that only the following day they found the child in the intensive care unit at Dora Nginza.”

Beetge said detectives were awaiting a medical report to confirm whether the child suffered from epilepsy.

“The family claims the child had a fit while the mother was away, which prompted the friend to seek help.

“She then ran out of the clinic in a panic to alert the mother,” he said.

“It appears that while the child was in hospital, a social worker saw the injuries on the child and alerted the police.

“At the time police were alerted, it was unknown that the mother had in fact been to the hospital to visit the child.”

Beetge said detectives were still consulting with the woman’s family and friends to rule out foul play.

Beetge said the case was very sensitive at this point and that police were still investigating a case of attempted murder.