THE family of Mbali Mvungande is praying she will be returned home safely.
According to the police and relatives of the woman from Vosloorus, Ekurhuleni, she is being held hostage by unidentified people.
After her disappearance almost two weeks ago, shocking images of her were posted online and went viral. The photos, which are believed to come from her kidnappers, show Mbali in what looks like a shack with a black cloth over her mouth. No ransom demands have been made.
Her mum, Sizakele Sibisi (50) told Daily Sun: “She left on 12 May and never returned. No one knew where she was going.
“On Friday we went to Vosloorus Police Station to open a missing person’s case.
“We are puzzled by her disappearance as we have never received any ransom demand.”
A Facebook post by a user called Za Ndile, who claimed to be Mbali’s sister, wrote a post in IsiZulu. The post read: “This is Mbali, my sister. She lives in Joburg and teaches at a day care centre. It’s been a week since she went missing. Her phone is on and they sent this picture but they don’t reply when we text them.
“Guys, we need all the help we can get. We’ve opened a missing person’s case, but cops are not taking action.”
Police spokesman Captain Piet Rossouw said: “When the docket was first opened, it was a missing person’s case.
“We then changed it to kidnapping after the images of Mbali came to light.”