The Hawks are reportedly appealing to anyone with information to come forward following reports that self-proclaimed prophet Shepherd Bushiri was spotted in South Africa despite being a wanted fugitive.
City Press reported on Sunday that Bushiri had been in the country several times since his dramatic escape in 2020. The most recent of these visits was in April and he managed to evade arrest.
Bushiri fled the country after being granted a R200 000 bail in his fraud, money laundering, and corruption trial late last year.
Reports indicated that Bushiri and his accomplices, including his wife Mary, were accused of defrauding congregates of his Enlightened Christian Gathering Church, to the tune of around R100 million.
In a statement, the Hawks said they would not be drawn into commenting on speculation that the controversial pastor has been hopping the fence in and out of South Africa, while evading law enforcement for months, The Citizen reported.
Extradition arrangements
The elite investigating unit, however, said it would “bring the country into confidence once there are notable developments” on the process of getting Bushiri back in South Africa to stand trial.
The Hawks maintained that all they knew was that Bushiri and his wife were in their home country of Malawi, waiting for their extradition hearing to be finalised by the Lilongwe magistrates court.
“A process to bring him back is dealt with by competent authorities in line with the extradition arrangements,” EWN quoted Hawks spokesperson, Philane Nkwalase as saying.
Nkwalase called on anyone with credible evidence to support these claims to provide such information to police.
The High Court in Pretoria has postponed the money laundering case to November.
Meanwhile, according to the broadcasting television channel eNCA, Bushiri’s lawyer said myths and lies would float around as Bushiri tried to avoid extradition back to South Africa from Malawi.
PICTURE: Twitter/@iAmKudaMaynard
