Police: STILL no sign of missing Gqeberha mother [Update]

The mother of two is STILL missing. Photo: SAPS

Police: Gqeberha mother STILL missing [UPDATE]

Police said there is still no sign of 45-year-old Sylvia Wittal, mother of two, who was reported missing in December 2021.

Police: STILL no sign of missing Gqeberha mother [Update]

The mother of two is STILL missing. Photo: SAPS

Police confirmed that the 45-year-old mother of two from Gqeberha remains missing three years after they discovered her car abandoned.

POLICE FOUND HER CAR IN SACRAMENTO

Sylvia Wittal has been missing since Thursday, 30 December 2021.

“It is alleged that the last contact with Sylvia was on 30 December 2021, when her ex-boyfriend, Kevin Crouse, had a telephone conversation with her.

“A missing person’s report was opened with the police on 2 January 2022 after her vehicle, a silver KIA Picanto, was found abandoned at Sacramento in Schoenmakerskop. It is suspected that the vehicle was parked there for about two days.”

Colonel Priscilla Naidu
Police: STILL no sign of missing Gqeberha mother [Update]
Police: STILL no sign of missing Gqeberha mother , Sylvia Wittal Photos: SAPS

Police also alleged that she left home with a blue backpack bearing the words ‘Iron Kids’.

“It was also established that she may have taken her late grandmother’s ashes with her. The ashes were in a very small container with a floral picture on the lid.
Sylvia has a distinctive tattoo on her right arm.”

THE LAST CONTACT WITH THE MOTHER WAS IN DECEMBER 2021

According to her ex-husband, he allegedly last spoke to her on the phone on Thursday, 30 December 2021, to make arrangements for their two children.

After he allegedly did not see or hear from her again, he opened a missing person report on 02 January 2022.

Colonel Priscilla Naidu, a police spokesperson, stated that the search for Sylvia has intensified as they have assigned a seasoned detective officer to find her.

“D/Const Ridwaan Baatjies of SAPS Humewood detectives has taken over the investigation and will be probing every possibility that led to her disappearance. Although a missing person’s report is currently being investigated, police have not ruled out suicide or foul play,”  

Naidu said.

POLICE HAVE NOT RULED OUT SUICIDE OR FOUL PLAY

She furthermore said the K9 Search and Rescue had conducted several searches in and around the area with no positive results. 

On Saturday, 22 January 2022, the community also searched in the vicinity, with no positive results.

Naidu reported that they have since impounded the vehicle for forensic tests.

Police found Sylvia’s Silver Kia Picanto at Sacramento, Schoenmakerskop.

Eyewitnesses in the area informed the police that the vehicle had been parked there for two days.

DO YOU HAVE MORE INFORMATION? 

Police are appealing to anyone who could assist in tracing Sylvia or may have any information, no matter how irrelevant one may think it is, to contact D/Const Baatjies on 073 1303018 or Crime Stop on 08600 10111 or their nearest police station. All information is confidential and callers may remain anonymous.

WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU HAVE A MISSING LOVED ONE:

When a person goes missing, it is of the utmost importance for the SAPS to fulfill our mandate to serve and protect the citizens of South Africa. It is essential to take steps and start the investigation into a missing person’s case immediately. You can assist the SAPS when reporting a missing person by following these steps:

Report a missing person at your nearest police station immediately.

  • Produce a recent photograph of the missing person, if possible.
  • Give a complete description of the missing person’s last whereabouts, clothes that they were wearing, as well as any information that can assist the investigating officer.
  • Complete and sign a SAPS 55(A) form. This form safeguards the SAPS from hoax reports and indemnifies the SAPS to distribute the photograph and information of the missing person.
  • Obtain the investigating officer’s contact details, and send any additional information that might become available.
  • If you find a missing person or they return voluntarily, promptly notify the investigating officer. Fill out a SAPS 92 form to notify the Bureau of Missing Persons that they can remove the missing person’s report from the circulation system.