Dead baby: Woman linked to dad
2005-06-19 10:11
Cape Town - A young woman who was arrested in Milnerton on Friday after the murder of Jordan Leigh Norton is apparently an intimate friend of the girl's biological father.
Police have connected the 24-year-old woman with the gruesome murder of six-month-old Jordan Leigh by four unknown men in Lansdowne, who stabbed the baby to death. The woman is being held but has not been charged.
Jordan Leigh was killed after the men gained entry to the house on false pretences. They allegedly wanted to deliver a parcel for the baby's grandfather, Vernon Norton. Dylan, 18, Jordan Leigh's uncle, and a domestic worker were at home.
Rapport determined that Jordan Leigh's mother, Natasha Norton, 22, was sacked by her latest boyfriend when he found out he was not Jordan Leigh's father. She was also negotiating maintenance with her previous boyfriend after blood tests determined he was the baby's biological father.
"I went to talk to him and his parents, but he didn't want to hear anything about Jordan Leigh," she said on Saturday.
Anastasia Norton said about her granddaughter: "She was our little angel. The house is full of things reminding us of her."
Vernon Norton had to identify Jordan Leigh's body on Friday afternoon. "I touched her. She's lovely. She's not angry with anybody."
Dylan, who survived the attack, said: "The previous afternoon about 16:00 someone called to say they would deliver a parcel the next morning (Wednesday). The woman spoke English without an accent and asked if someone would be home to receive the parcel."
"The next morning, one of the men held out a piece of paper for me to sign. The moment I had signed, he became aggressive."
The man pulled out a long knife and he and three accomplices pushed Dylan through the front door.
"I couldn't see them but only heard Jordan starting to cry before the men pushed the domestic worker into the room. She said they had taken Jordan from her."
"I begged them to leave the baby, because it seemed they wanted to abduct her. They spoke Xhosa and the leader said only one thing in English - that he would return the baby - but he didn't."
Dylan later managed to free himself and the domestic worker from the electric cord with which they had been tied up.
He found the baby's bloodied body in his room shortly afterwards.
"At first I could only see her little feet, because there was a pillow on top of her. There was so much blood. It dripped on the floor. I kept hoping that she was alive, because she didn't move. When I picked her up, she gave a little kick."
Police believed the men were hired killers, since only a safe and a firearm were taken.
The safe was carried away in a blue and white nappy bag with a double zipper.
Anybody with more information can contact detective inspector Esmerald Baily at 021-467-6006 or 072-215-6699.