Pretoria: A South African woman who claimed to have set a new world record by giving birth to as many as 10 babies, has been admitted to a psychiatric ward for inventing the fake story. According to ‘The Sun’, 37-year-old Gosiame Thamara Sithole was first arrested at a relative’s house near Johannesburg in the early hours of June 17.
She was then handed over to social workers who then admitted her to Tembisa Hospital’s psychiatric ward for a mental health assessment. The police denied that Sithole had been arrested for a crime, and said that she was taken to the station after her relatives and partner reported her as missing. She had also accused the father of her children of trying to become a ‘millionaire’ from the story and taking donations from the public meant for the newborns.
The 37-year-old woman, who is from the province of Gauteng, said she gave birth to decuplets– seven boys and three girls, who were conceived naturally, through C-section at a hospital in Pretoria on June 7. She claimed the decuplets came as a surprise as she was expecting only 8 children.
Soon after, speculations and doubts arose around her story as there weren’t any proof of existence of the 10 babies. South Africa’s Department of National Health also claimed that its own research has concluded that there is no evidence that children are present. However, a local media outlet insisted the births did take place and there has been a cover-up to disguise medical negligence.
Meanwhile, her lawyer Refiloe Mokoena has claimed that she is being held against her will and that she will apply for a court order to secure her release.
”She declined that she should be taken to Tembisa Hospital for a psychiatric evaluation because she felt strongly that she is of sound mind. When I left Tembisa Hospital, she made it clear that seeing that she is now being held against her will, I should please move an urgent court order for her to be released,” the lawyer told the media, as reported by Daily Mail.