Members of Reaction Unit South Africa (RUSA) had difficulty in verifying the age of a 13-year-old runaway who masqueraded as an 18-year-old woman in the presence of Reaction Officers, her boyfriend had of six months and his family when she was located in Shallcross in Kwazulu Natal.
The child from Verulam in KZN was discovered missing after her family found a note in her bedroom this morning at approximately 11:38. They then contacted the RUSA Operations Center for assistance.
Reaction Officers tracked the teenager to a home in Shallcross and confronted an adult male and his family. The man and his parents were adamant that the girl was an 18-year-old educator. When interviewed in the presence of the male at his home in Shallcross, the girl informed Reaction Officers that she was 18 years old and a teacher at a primary school in Verulam.
Officers requested that the girl’s family produce an identity document to confirm that the runaway was a minor. Upon viewing the document is was confirmed that the child was 13 years old and had misled the adult male and his immediate family.
The girl was then handed to her parents and transported back to her home.