Written by Qudissiyah Kasu
Ravensmead community members are intensifying the search for missing 8-year-old Tazne Van Wyk, despite no leads at present. A massive search continued for the little girl on Friday, who was kidnapped in Elsies River over a week ago. She was allegedly taken when she visited a tuckshop near her home in Connaught Estate. When interviewed by the police, neighbours said a visitor who recently moved in with a family in that street had also disappeared. It’s been over a week of the little girl being missing leaving angry community members acting on misinformation around the whereabouts of a person of interest, 54-year-old Pangkaeker Moyhdian.
Ravensmead CPF member Zelda Trantaal said surrounding areas were searched at the same time by SAPS, the City of Cape Town , several community neighbourhood watch groups and people from the Elsies River community but even with all the help still nothing was found.
It’s believed Pangkaeker wasn’t a stranger, but he didn’t actual communicate or interact with anyone making it even harder to get information on him. There have been leads of his whereabouts but none that seem to be leading investigators closer to him. Trantaal also suspects that the suspect was watching what they were doing and where they were looking.
“It was normal for Tazne to walk alone to the shop because it wasn’t very far from her house and it would roughly take her about a minute to get back home if the tuckshop was empty. The tuckshop owner says that he saw Pangkaeker talking with Tazne, that was also the last time that she was seen,” said Trantaal.
“People said they saw him scouting the school Tazne attends for the past week and I am aware that he is said to have a previous conviction for similar offences,” said Carmen Van Wyk, Tazne’s mother.
“This was just a tragic week; every day and the whole day I needed to explain the same thing to people over and over again.’’
She added that her other two daughters, one aged 4 and the other 4 months, had also been taking strain.
Tazne’s parents are still very hopeful in the search for their daughter.
Carmen said: “I am very sad, but I believe my child is still alive. I just hope she will be found soon.”