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The formal extradition hearing of South Africa-based multimillionaire pastor Shepherd Bushiri and his wife has been suspended due to “evidence bias.” The shift came as the defense counsel launched an application for the withdrawal of the presiding judge. The extradition hearing had originally been scheduled to take place on March 8 in the Lilongwe Magistrate’s Court.
“We were ready to proceed, but when we got to the court, we realized that the court had changed magistrates, which took us by surprise,” Wapona Kita, the defense counsel, was reported by News24 as saying, “We have information that it is the same magistrate who issued a warrant of arrest against our client.”
Earlier in January, Malawian Justice Ministry Spokesperson Pirirani Masanjala announced that the Lilongwe Magistrate’s Court had issued a warrant of arrest for the two fugitives and scheduled the hearing for March 8, according to News24.
Shephrd Bushiri and his wife, Mary, suffered a very public fall from grace on Feb. 1, 2019, when the South African Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI) arrested them at a hotel in Rustenburg, a small town at the foot of the Magaliesberg mountains. The couple were charged with fraud, money laundering and infringing the Prevention of Organized Crime Act in 2015.
Also known as the “Hawks,” the DPCI launched an investigation into the Bushiris in 2018. SABC News reported that the pastor was accused of laundering “more than R102 million (approximately $6.6 million) through his church,” the Enlightened Christian Gathering.
For months on end after their arrest, the South African judicial system failed to schedule a time for the trial against the Bushiris. In November 2020, they received conditional bail, restricting their travel to the Gauteng and North West provinces until the case is brought to a close.
Shortly after they were bailed, the couple fled to Bushiri’s native Malawi, citing fears that they would not receive a fair trial in South Africa, ZWNews reported. At the time of their escape, Malawian President Lazarus Chakwera and his delegation were scheduled to depart South Africa after a working visit with the country’s President Cyril Ramaphosa. The situation led to a delay in Chakwera’s flight at Pretoria airport for seven hours as officials searched the presidential jet.
A few things to know about the Shepherd Bushiri
Shepherd Bushiri is a Malawian preacher, motivational speaker, author and businessman with interests in mining, real estate and air travel. He is recognized as one of Africa’s wealthiest pastors with a net worth of $150 million as of July 2020, according to Naijaauto. He also has more than 1 million followers in South Africa alone, Al Jazeera reported.
Bushiri’s South African followers call him “Prophet Shepherd Bushiri,” “papa,” or “Major.” Rumors abound about his life and upbringing. His father named him Chipiliro Gama at birth. The Sunday Times cited an anonymous member of his church as saying Bushiri claims to have been disowned by his Muslim family after becoming a pastor at the age of eight. He was said to have revealed a scar on his foot where his father shot the young pastor as he ran away.
