Grandmother in Chatsworth's Baby X case dies in prison
One of two women accused of the rape and murder of the Chatsworth toddler dubbed Baby X has died in the awaiting trial section of Durban’s Westville Prison.
The KwaZulu-Natal Correctional Services Department has confirmed that the woman, who was Baby X’s grandmother, died yesterday.
The woman's 35-year-old daughter is Baby X's mother and the second accused in the murder case.
The 3-year-old girl was found dead at her Havenside home, near Chatsworth south of Durban in November 2014.
Thulani Mdluli, who speaks for Correctional Services in the province, has told Newswatch the grandmother had been suffering from various health problems when she arrived at Westville Prison three years ago.
Mdluli says the 58-year-old's death has been attributed to natural causes.
The woman cannot be named to protect the identity of Baby X’s siblings whom she was also accused of abusing.
The case will be back in court in June for closing arguments with just Baby X’s mother in the dock.