Cleo Smith’s mum reveals moment she realised her daughter had been taken

The mum of little Cleo Smith has spoken out about the gut-wrenching moment she realised someone had taken her four-year-old daughter.

Cleo Smith’s mum has opened up about the horrific moment she realised her little girl had been taken.

In a new clip released in the lead up to this Sunday’s $2 million tell-all interview with 60 Minutes, Ellie Smith shared moment she realised “someone had my baby”.

“I felt like my heart was … it told me, like, she’s not here, she’s not going to run into my arms today. She’s not going to run down a sand dune,” Ms Smith told reporter Tara Brown.

“She was basically nowhere near me and that was the second I realised that someone had her and both my head and my heart connected to that. Someone has taken her and someone had my baby.”

Ellie Smith revealed the horrifying moment she realised her daughter had been taken. Picture: 60 Minutes/Channel 9

Cleo was missing for 18 days after being abducted from her family’s tent in the early hours of October 16, 2021 at the Quobba Blowholes Campsite in Western Australia.

Her disappearance sparked a massive search and gained international attention.

She was eventually discovered by police on November 3 at a home in Carnarvon, just over 80km from where she was taken.

Terence Darrell Kelly, 36, was arrested the same day Cleo was found.

He has since plead guilty to forcibly taking a child aged under 16 and faced Carnarvon Magistrates Court in late January via video link from the maximum security Casuarina Prison in Perth.

The matter was committed to the WA District Court for a sentence mention in March.

Cleo’s mum Ms Smith and her stepfather Jake Gliddon have spoken with 60 Minutes as part of a $2 million exclusive interview.

Cleo Smith was missing for 18 days. Picture: Western Australian Police Force/AFP

In another preview from the interview, Ms Smith revealed Cleo “loves” her new-found fame and is coping extremely well in the wake of the ordeal.

“She loves it,” told the program.

“We were in Perth and someone went up to her and they’re like: ‘Hi Cleo’, and she was like: ‘Hi! Hello!’”

But the youngster also doesn’t quite understand the situation.

“We walked away, and she was like, ‘Mum, how does she know my name?’” Ms Smith continued.

In another clip, Ms Smith recalled the emotional moment she was reunited with Cleo.

“[She said] ‘Hi mummy!’” Ms Smith said, who matched her daughter’s enthusiasm by responding, “Hi baby!”

She also revealed she felt “powerless” during the 18 days Cleo was missing, saying it was “just nightmare after nightmare”.

The staggering cost of the exclusive interview has raised eyebrows, especially given the fact it was conducted via video call.

West Australian Premier Mark McGowan’s decision not to open his state borders as planned meant the interview couldn’t be conducted in person, leading journalist Neil McMahon to dub the exclusive “one helluva costly video call”.

“Nine’s very expensive 60 Minutes interview with Cleo Smith’s family? It was done via Zoom due to WA border restrictions! That’s one helluva costly video call,” McMahon wrote on Twitter, alongside a screenshot of The Australian’s Tuesday ‘Media Diary’.

In the screenshot, the paper’s Nick Tabakoff wrote that Nine being unable to meet with the family in person is “a potential problem when (after an intense bidding war with Seven) you’ve been pushing to pay a rumoured $2m for the multimedia rights with the family over the affair”.

Terence Darrell Kelly has pleased guilty to kidnapping Cleo. Picture: Colin Murty

“With WA’s borders chained and padlocked, Nine had a dilemma: to deploy the reporter it wanted, 60 Minutes’ own Tara Brown, to interview the family by Zoom from Sydney, or employ a WA local to conduct the interview in person,” Tabakoff continued.

“In the event, Nine chose to go for the Zoom interview with Brown – and will get an early sign whether its seven-figure investment was worth it when 60 Minutes returns next Sunday.”

It is understood the deal includes a miniseries or documentary as well as stories across Channel 9’s website and papers.

My Name Is Cleo will air on Sunday, February 6 at 8.30pm on Channel 9 and 9 Now.

- with Natalie Brown