Kidnapping: Zephany Nurse

 A two-day-old baby gets kidnapped. Seventeen years later, she would be reunited with her biological parents after she went to school with her biological younger sister.

On April 28th 1997, Celeste Nurse went to the Groot Schuur Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa, to deliver her and her husband’s first daughter via caesarean section. The surgery was a success; both Celeste and Zephany were healthy afterwards. They would be kept in the hospital for a few days to monitor Celeste’s healing stomach.

Two days after the birth, Celeste remembered seeing a woman dressed in maroon pants and an oatmeal top comforting Zephany in her bassinet. Celeste recognised the clothing as a nurse’s uniform and fell back to sleep, thinking that her baby was being cared for by a professional. The next time that Celeste woke, it was to a different nurse questioning her repeatedly. “Where is the baby?”.

That was how Celeste learnt that her 2-day-old daughter wasn’t safe in her bassinet.

The hospital staff called the police for help with searching the grounds and surrounding area for any trace of who had taken Zephany and where they were. A few untraceable items were found inside the hospital; they included a baby nest, a baby garment, and a handbag with all identifiers removed.

Inside the hospital was a tunnel connecting the street to the former main building, the labour ward, the unrestricted outpatient section, and the psychiatric department. Police found a sole pillow close to the labour ward entrance. It’s assumed from this discovery that the kidnapper managed to go unnoticed by faking a pregnancy bump until they could get ahold of a nurse’s uniform. With the uniform, they went on to befriend mothers on the ward.

“Her intention was to steal a child, she didn’t care which child it was.” Celeste later said in an interview. Her statement seems like the case considering the following interaction an expectant mother remembered.

Shortly after she had given birth to her baby, she found a ‘nurse’ that she didn’t recognise holding her baby. When confronted, the ‘nurse’ returned the baby to its bed after claiming she was only comforting them as they were crying.

The Nurse family had to return home after five days in the hospital.

Celeste clung to the hope that everything was all a heartless joke and that her baby would be safely returned to her care.

That wouldn’t happen, and the Nurse family had to fight so the public wouldn’t forget about their missing two-day-old. They would celebrate Zephany’s birthday every year, and Celeste would take any interview to keep talking about her firstborn daughter. She would also offer support to families affected by kidnappings, helping them through the process using her own experience.

Celeste and her husband Morne would have a second daughter, Cassidy, four years after Zephany’s disappearance.

Two of the more notable times that the Nurse family were given hope only for it to be ripped away were shortly after Zephany’s kidnapping and in 2009.

In 1997, a woman was reported to the police by her neighbour after she returned home with a new baby that looked similar to Zephany’s description. The neighbour was suspicious as she hadn’t seen the mother show signs of pregnancy in the past months. It was quickly ruled not Zephany when police checked the lead and found that the baby was born male.

The 2009 incident was in July. A woman called the Nurse family home, whispering, “I know about your daughter.” and asking for R500,000 (this would’ve worked out as £41,750 or $67,700) to be delivered to a prearranged location in exchange for Zephany’s return.

The police were contacted immediately, and the drop-off location was under surveillance. Nobody came to pick up the money.

The call was then traced to Glenda Doubell, a neighbour of Celeste’s mother. Doubell would be sentenced to 3 years of house arrest, an R5,000 fine and 600 hours of community service for extortion.

In January 2015, Cassidy Nurse started at a new school that an older girl with strikingly similar features attended. The older girl was called Miché Solomon, and after her friends pointed out Cassidy and her appearance, the pair became fast friends, despite the four-year age gap.

Cassidy eventually told her father about the 17-year-old. He hadn’t forgotten about his missing firstborn, so he arranged to meet his daughter’s friend. The three met up at a local takeaway. After the meeting, Morne contacted the investigating officer on Zephany’s case, telling him about Miché Solomon.

The police started their investigation instantly, believing even more in the theory when Miché’s parents couldn’t provide any documents regarding her birth, thus leading to DNA tests being conducted and Miché being moved out of the Solomon home by the Department of Social Services. The Nurse family were granted visitations, and apparently, Miché began calling Celeste and Morne ‘mother and father’ almost as soon as she met them.

In August 2016, Lavona Solomon was sentenced t o10 years for the abduction of Zephany Nurse. Her identity was initially hidden “to protect the identity she gave to the baby,”. Miché Solomon wasn’t a public name either.

Miché, who I believe goes more by Miché now, applied to get the restriction on the publication of her legal name (Miché Solomon) lifted. The high court in Pretoria granted the request on the 13th of August 2019. Hours after the lift, Miché announced that her book Zephany: Two Mothers, One Daughter, an Astonishing True Story would be published. She dedicated the book to both of her mothers in an article published by Times Live.

Miché struggled to form a connection with the Nurse family, and when she turned 18, she moved back to live with the father that raised her. He had been absolved of any involvement with the kidnapping. Miché had kept Miché Solomon as her legal name as that is the name she identifies with more. She is also a mother of two children and has forgiven Lavona, who she still calls her mother, and visits her in prison regularly.

Celeste and Morne re-married after ending their relationship when Miché was missing. They have a building relationship with Miché and their grandchildren but still struggle with what was said in the documentary GIRL, TAKEN. Not much else is known about the Nurse family.

Lavona will be eligible for parole again in July 2023 after being denied in 2022.