The court proceedings for the accused, who face charges of human trafficking and kidnapping of six-year-old Joshlin Smith, were preceded by violent clashes between police and protesters. A 29-year-old female police constable was hit in the face and rushed to hospital with blood flowing from her wound.

On Wednesday, a large crowd attempted to remove the barbed wire preventing them from entering Vredenburg Magistrates Court. They pelted police with stones, prompting police to fire stun grenades and teargas.

The crowd's desire to get inside the court grew even stronger after police removed Patriotic Alliance influencer Ashley Sauls from the media contingent covering the case and prevented him from doing a live feed from inside the court. Sauls, a TikTok political influencer, was granted permission to record proceedings for the platform last week.

Protesters chanted, "Where were the cops when Joshlin went missing, where were the cops when we searched for him in the early hours, and why did SAPS treat them like animals by barricading them in?"

In the ensuing chaos, a female police constable suffered a facial wound and was immediately transported to the nearest hospital.

Joshlin went missing on 19 February near Tsitsiratsitsi, Middelpos, Saldanha. Her mother, Racquel Smith, stated that the last time she saw her daughter was when she left for work at approximately 8am the same day. She left the little girl with her boyfriend, Jacquin Appollis. Joshlin was not present when Smith returned home around 5pm. However, a week-long search produced...