Actress and media personality Denise Zimba has shared the emotional toll of being separated from her daughters, Leah and Mila, following an ongoing legal dispute with her estranged husband, Jakob Schlichtig.
In a touching Instagram post on Easter Sunday, Denise opened up about the pain of not being with her children.
She wrote: “I love you Leah and Mila. Haven’t seen or spoken to you since last Saturday. My body shows I bared my children, but no children in sight. God only knows why this is happening. The truth will always find its way. Love mama. Happy Easter.”
Denise and Jakob’s story began in Cape Town in 2015. The couple welcomed their first daughter, Leah, in July 2019 and married just months later. They eventually relocated to Munich, Germany, where their second daughter, Mila, was born in 2023.
Denise Zimba
However, cracks began to show, and Denise filed for divorce in September of that year.
After the family traveled to South Africa for what was meant to be a holiday, Denise made the decision to remain in the country with her daughters.
She cited attempted assault and infidelity as some of the reasons she stayed behind. But her decision led to legal consequences.
The Johannesburg High Court later ruled that the children, aged just one and four, must return to Germany, citing the Hague Convention—a global treaty that addresses international child abduction.
Judge Maletsatsi Mahalelo concluded that since the children had been living in Germany prior to the visit, they needed to be returned to their country of habitual residence.
Speaking to Sunday Times, Denise offered her side of the story.
“I did not abduct my children,” she said. “We both agreed the children and I would stay in SA after a round table meeting with my estranged husband and my family, only for him to return to Germany and open the case. It was a shock to me and my family.”
She further explained, “I was four months post-partum and financially dependent on my estranged husband. My career had been halted for the longest time. I had to fight for my girls to remain with me, their primary caregiver, during my divorce. My girls were four years and four months at the time.”
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