A six-month-old baby who was abandoned at Gandhi Park in Verulam has been safely reunited with their extended family.
The Reaction Unit South Africa (Rusa) operations centre initially dispatched reaction officers to Gandhi Park on Thursday, 25 June, after receiving reports that a woman had handed her baby to a stranger before walking away.
Rusa spokesperson Prem Balram said: “The mother handed her infant to a stranger in the park. The man believed he was merely holding the baby temporarily, but later observed the woman walking towards the railway line. She failed to return, despite him waiting approximately three hours. The man subsequently entrusted the child to an unknown woman, who eventually contacted Rusa for assistance.”
Reaction officers were also handed a bag believed to have been abandoned by the mother. Inside were birth certificates and other documents bearing the names Amirah Amarah Cassim and Afsana Cassim, as well as baby bottles, nappies, and other infant items. Reaction officers believe that the birth certificate and other documents found do not match the age of the baby.
Rusa paramedics cared for the child while reaction officers attempted to locate the family. As reaction officers and police officers shared details of the incident, several tip-offs were received at the operations centre based on information shared on social media platforms. One call was received from the aunt of the child, who arrived at the Rusa headquarters and identified the baby.
Balram said: “The aunt identified herself as the mother’s sister and was accompanied by two men. They stated that the mother was a 29-year-old resident of eThekwini.”
The family revealed that the mother has five children. Authorities tracked down the respective fathers and confirmed all the other siblings are safe and accounted for. Following the family coming forward, police successfully located the mother. Balram said that a criminal case of child abandonment will be registered. SAPS Verulam were contacted for confirmation but did not respond by time of print.
Child abandonment is unfortunately a recurring issue in Verulam, with localised incidents frequently reported by authorities and emergency responders.
Just days earlier, in a separate incident, an infant was abandoned in a walkway behind the Copper Chimney restaurant on Wick Street in the Verulam CBD. CCTV footage showed a woman leaving her six-month-old baby at the edge of a flight of stairs before leaving the scene. The child was found in good health by a fast-food employee and cared for by medics.
In February 2025, reaction officers rescued a newborn baby from a stormwater drain in the Verulam Central Business District. Reaction officers were flagged down by a pedestrian who believed an animal was trapped in the stormwater drain; however, upon investigation, reaction officers discovered a baby in a plastic bag.
