When Gayton McKenzie launched the Joshlin Smith Foundation last weekend, he claimed he had hired a private investigator to find the missing girl from Saldanha, Western Cape. But the investigator said it’s not true.
Speaking to Rapport, Tyrone Power said while he is investigating the Joshlin Smith case, he’s doing it for free for the young girl’s family.
“I read things in the media and wonder whether Gayton is talking about me or perhaps about someone else he did appoint. I work for free for Joshlin’s family and was not appointed by him. Some of the things he says, I did not say,” Power said.
Joshlin is still missing after disappearing from the Middelpos informal settlement in Saldanha Bay in February 2024.
Her mother, Kelly Smith, and her co-accused Boeta Appollis and Steveno van Rhyn were arrested for Joshlin’s disappearance. They were sentenced last year to life imprisonment for human trafficking and 10 years for kidnapping.
Private investigator disputes Gayton McKenzie’s claims
At the launch of the foundation, McKenzie said he believes other people were also involved in Joshlin’s disappearance.
He said state witness Laurentia Lombaard is willing to provide extra information about the case and her boyfriend Ayanda Letoni could be the “mastermind” behind the young girl’s kidnapping. McKenzie said Lombaard is willing to provide the new information because Letoni assaulted her child. The minister also said they regard Joshlin as still alive.
But Power disputes this.
“[Lombaard] never said she wanted to talk to the police or that her child was assaulted. That’s not true. I also did not say Joshlin is still alive. I said I regard her as alive until we have forensic evidence that proves the contrary,” he said.
Power believes he has uncovered new information in the case and has handed it to the police’s organised crime unit in the Western Cape.
He claimed he also sent the information to McKenzie’s lawyer, but did not hear back from them.
‘I do things on my own’
Power reiterated that he is not being paid by McKenzie to search for Joshlin. He said he started investigating the case because it bothered him “that she just vanished”.
When McKenzie contacted him, the investigator told him, “I do things on my own”. He said the minister then offered to help “with resources”.
He said McKenzie gave him money to cover his travel and accommodation costs, adding that he has since cut ties with the minister.
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