Joslin Smith Trial: Psychic Trashes Renz For Spewing ‘Lies’ Amid Testimony, Quizzes McKenzie’s Role

• A US psychic has zoned in on Lourentia Lombaard, the State's star witness in the Joslin Smith disappearance trial
• Kandis Starr shared being sceptical about the testimony Lombaard has been leading in the Western Cape High Court
• Starr, who in 2024 claimed that she had made contact with Joslin's spirit, also speculated about Gayton McKenzie

Tshepiso Mametela is a seasoned journalist and the Head of Current Affairs at Briefly News. He reported live from President Cyril Ramaphosa's inauguration and has written articles on politics, crime, courts, accidents, and topics including sports at The Herald and Opera News SA over several years.

SALDANHA BAY — Not all are buying into the testimony of former accused-turned-witness in the Joslin Smith disappearance trial, Lourentia Lombaard.

Proceedings at the Western Cape High Court, sitting as a circuit court in Saldanha Bay, continued into a twelfth day on Tuesday, 18 March 2025.

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Spirit medium examines Renz's testimony

After three days in the witness box, Lombaard, testifying as the prosecution's star witness in the case, concluded her evidence-in-chief on Monday.

The presiding officer, Judge Nathan Erasmus, ordered that she would return for the defence's cross-examination, while several more State witnesses testified.

Lombaard's evidence included claims that Joslin's mother, Kelly, who stands accused of kidnapping and human trafficking alongside her boyfriend, Jacquin Appollis, and their friend Steveno van Rhyn, sold the little girl to a Sangoma.

She detailed the events leading up to 19 February 2024, when Joslin disappeared from the Middelpos informal settlement in Diazville.

Since then, the trial has garnered significant attention, both in SA and globally.

An American psychic, Kandis Starr, who's been vocal about the case from the start, shared in late 2024 that she believed Joslin was dead, having been killed by someone she knew, and had contacted her spirit.

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Now, as the case unravels, Starr, who dismissed Renz’s claims of Kelly Smith selling Joslin to a Sangoma (traditional healer), homed in on Lombaard's testimony. The US medium rubbished her evidence and claimed Renz — the nickname she goes by — was lying to cover up the truth.

According to Starr, the reality was far more ominous.

In a YouTube video, she claimed Lombaard's body language, which she described as nervous and characterised by shifty eyes and breaking eye contact, were possible signs she was being untruthful.

Watch the video below:

She said:

"I don’t believe she [Lombaard] was there, and I don’t think Kelly was there. I believe that Kelly does think something happened to Joslin. [However], she isn't completely sure [because she was high on drugs]."

Kandis also questioned Renz’s clean appearance, contrary to her dishevelled look in March 2024, when she was first arrested alongside the accused on trial.

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Joslin Smith: Lourentia Lombaard said Kelly was allegedly paid to keep quiet about selling Joslin

"Who is sponsoring this lady because that [seems to be] what is happening here? ... How do you go from complete poverty to [having your] hair [and] make-up done, [and sporting] new outfits?" said Starr.

She also speculated about Sports, Arts and Culture Minister, Gayton McKenzie's proximity to the case.

"Has anyone looked at Gayton [yet], and where he gets his money? Here, in the US, it's all believed to be alleged illegal dealings."

What you need to know about the Joslin Smith case

• Kelly admitted to smoking drugs and getting high on the day Joslin Smith disappeared from Middelpos
• Detective Sergeant Meyer Milstein testified to doubting the suspects' truthfulness about Joslin's disappearance
• A former employer described Kelly as a good mother who had a good relationship with her children
• In March 2024, 15,000 people signed an online petition to deny bail to Joslin Smith's disappearance suspects
• During a search for Joslin, bloodstained clothing was found in Diazville and linked to the missing six-year-old
• On 28 February 2025, CCTV footage sparked hope that Joslin Smith was alive, though there were doubts over the claims
• The court ordered an inspection in-loco at the Middelpos informal settlement, where the community berated the accused

Source: Briefly News