The Western Cape High Court on Tuesday was shown video footage that appeared to show a visibly limping Steveno van Rhyn, one of the accused in the Joshlin Smith case, struggling to sit down, a moment that raised concern from both his legal representative and the presiding judge.

The six-year-old went missing from her Middelpos home in Saldanha Bay on 19 February 2024.

Her mother, Racquel ‘Kelly’ Smith, her boyfriend, Jacquen ‘Boeta’ Appollis, and their friend, Steveno van Rhyn, were arrested weeks later and are facing charges of kidnapping and human trafficking.

Van Rhyn’s lawyer, Nobahle Mkabayi, argued that the accused was tortured, deprived of sleep and food, and forced to confess under extreme physical and psychological pressure during an interview on 4 and 5 March 2024. The video footage was recorded on March 5 by the police.

The trial-within-a-trial is currently testing the admissibility of that confession.

Footage presented in court siting in the White City Multipurpose Centre, Diazville showed Van Rhyn walking into the room with what appeared to be a limp, dragging his left leg and wearing only socks.

Mkabayi said her client had not been wearing shoes because his feet were swollen from the previous night’s torture.

Judge Nathan Erasmus questioned Captain Philip Seekoei, the officer who took the confession, on why he failed to notice the accused’s physical discomfort.

“From what I saw, it looked like the left knee didn’t bend at all. It’s more pronounced as he came past you, that he was dragging his left leg,” Erasmus said.

Seekoei responded that he did not notice anything concerning at the time.

“I had no reason to be concerned,” he said, adding that he only realised the limp after reviewing the footage.

“You said there was no reason to be concerned, and then you told me your instruction was clear to get a confession. What does that mean?” Erasmus asked.

“It can be interpreted as, ‘come hell or high water, get the confession.’”

The video also showed Van Rhyn struggling to sit down.

“Before he sat down, he balanced his body and then threw his body on the chair,” Mkabayi said.

Judge Erasmus noted that the accused appeared to put all his weight on one arm to lower himself. Seekoei claimed he had only noticed these movements while watching the video before testifying in court.

“This is now the third thing you say you didn’t notice: the limp, the socks, and how he struggled to sit,” Mkabayi pointed out.

Erasmus said the accused was seen earlier that day by a district surgeon who observed an injury and ordered his knee to be bandaged.

Another doctor had previously identified a past operation on the same knee and called for an X-ray.

Mkabayi said her client had not eaten since 2pm the day before and was deprived of sleep the entire night.

When asked whether he had been informed of this, Seekoei said no.

“Would you have continued with the confession had you known?” Mkabayi asked.

“No, my Lord,” Seekoei responded.

Seekoei also confirmed that after another officer left Van Rhyn because he had fallen asleep, he was not certain where the accused had rested.

“I would assume they took him back to the cells,” he said.

When asked whether he regarded a cell as an appropriate resting place, he said, “That is correct.”

Mkabayi alleged that her client’s difficulty in sitting down was because “his private parts were pinched” during the alleged torture.

Seekoei responded, “I don’t know anything about that.”

The trial-within-a-trial continues this week.

mandilakhe.tshwete@inl.co.za