Our 72 Hours Of Hell

The relieved parents of snatched baby Eden recall the terror of their son’s kidnap ordeal

- Marizka Coetzer

THE little boy grins as his mother cuddles him on her lap, oblivious to the ordeal his parents have been through. Yet as far as his mom and dad are concerned, nothing will ever be the same again.

Their precious family was ripped apart when baby Eden was kidnapped recently, triggering a harrowing 72 hours when they didn’t know if they’d see him again.

The 13-month-old boy’s disappearance made national news headlines after the Pink Ladies, an organisation that helps find missing children, posted a plea on social media for the safe return of Bronwyn and Stuart Laird’s son.

He was last seen with his nanny, the notice read, when she took him for a walk and didn’t return.

But anyone who’s been following the story now knows what transpired: the nanny, Cleopatra Manjankhozi, has been arrested in connection with a charge of kidnapping, along with four other people.

And Bronwyn (36) and Stuart (46) are still reeling in shock and disbelief. “She was like a second mom in our home,” Bronwyn says in an exclusive interview with YOU. “We didn’t like her; we loved her. She was part of the family. We had no reason not to trust her.”

The Lairds live in Brackendowns in Alberton on Johannesburg’s East Rand with Eden and their three older boys. The lawn in front of their facebrick home is usually filled with kids playing soccer – but after Eden’s disappearance there wasn’t a child in sight.

Instead the place was filled with patrol vehicles and police officers as the hunt for the little boy was in full swing.

For three days the Lairds barely slept, answering call after call from the kidnappers, who demanded vast amounts of money. And throughout it all, they said one thing: please don’t hurt our baby.