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By Liam Ngobeni

Freelance journalist


Search for missing Mamelodi girl ends in tragedy

The 10-year-old autistic girl’s body was found on Sunday in Mamelodi West.


In a sad turn of events, the body of 10-year-old Katlego ‘Katli’ Joja, who has been missing since Thursday last week, was found near a river in D2 Mamelodi West, Pretoria East Rekord reports.

The news was confirmed by her uncle Thabiso Storom, who said that he had identified her body on Sunday afternoon.

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He said the family was waiting on the autopsy report and a thorough briefing by the police today, May 7, to find out the exact cause of death of the 10-year-old girl.

Storom said he did not expect the search for her to end in tragedy, and that the family was overcome with emotion.

Katlego went missing from her home in the west of Mamelodi on Thursday morning.

Despite several alleged sightings, Katlego could not be found earlier this weekend.

Storom had earlier told Pretoria East Rekord that the family’s search for her around Spar Tsakane and Mandela Bridge in Mamelodi, where she was allegedly spotted on Friday, proved fruitless.

The family’s previous frantic efforts in canvassing the community to find Katlego had also failed.

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