ILDA JACOBS, Washington | Tuesday
SOUTH African aupair Nambuso Ntuli has finally been granted bail and released from an American jail where she was being held on child abuse charges.
The 23-year-old from KwaMashu near Durban was arrested by police in the US capital Washington DC three weeks ago after allegedly locking two young boys in a car for over 90 minutes during a heatwave.
The incident is classed as child abuse in the US, and resulted in two felony child neglect and reckless child endangerment charges.
Prince William County Judge Jean Smith agreed to release Ntuli into the care of her employer late last week, on condition that she surrender her passport and report for trial on October 16.
Ntuli was previously denied bail after State prosecutors stressed that her work permit with Aupair-in-America expired in September. She was therefore classified as a flight risk.
Judge Smith warned Ntuli last week that she would be liable for a US$2 500 fine if she missed her court date, and would also face additional criminal charges.
“This is fantastic. It means that I can finally speak to my family,” Ntuli told the court.
She refused to speak to the press after her release, however, and fled the courthouse with a jacket over her head.
Her State appointed attorney, James Griffin, said Ntuli would not return to the American family where she had been employed as a nanny for the past nine months.
“She will instead stay with an Aupair-in-America representative until her trial. Ntuli faces very serious charges that carry sentences of up to six years, but there was no malice in this case and I believe the court will be lenient,” said Griffin.
Ntuli’s new home is expected to be better than the Prince William Adult Detention Centre where she has been jailed since her arrest on August 12.
Her case has received widespread publicity in the US. Ntuli was arrested after allegedly leaving two boys, aged three and six years old, in a locked car for 90 minutes while shopping at a local mall.
Concerned mall security staff called police after allegedly noticing Ntuli return once to wipe sweat from the children, before locking the car again and going back to the mall.
The heatwave was so severe that local police where handing out free bottles of water, and local non-profit groups warned that up to 54 children had died of heat exhaustion and dehydration across America after being locked unattended in parked cars. – African Eye News Service