Prophet Bushiri and wife return to custody as court set ruling on bail to Wednesday

South Africa-based self-proclaimed prophet Shepherd ‘Major 1’ Bushiri and his wife, Mary, on Monday returned to the Kgosi Mampuru Prison where they are on remand as  Pretoria Magistrate’s court  said it will rule on their bail application on Wednesday.

The prophet and his spouse face charges of fraud, theft, and money laundering in connection with an alleged K4.6 billion (R102 million) over a company known as Rising Estate.

The couple has been in custody for almost two weeks and are charged alongside  Willah and Zethu Mudolo and Landiwe Ntlokoane.

The State  are opposition to the bail application, arguing that the Bushiri’s were at flight risk

However,  Bushiri through his lawyer Anneline Van Den Heever argued otherwise.

“I deny that any offence was ever committed by me. I have no reasons to run away. I have no reason to evade my trial as I need to vindicate myself,” Bushiri is quoted as saying in his affidavit.

Bushiri has also already handed over his  Malawian diplomatic passport to the investigating officer.

The supporters  of Bushiri, leader of the Enlightened Christian Gathering (ECG) Church were outside the court to show their support.

Bushiri and his wife were also arrested in February 2019 and face separate charges of fraud, money laundering and contravening the Prevention of Organised Crime Act for offences they allegedly committed from 2015.

The initial case relates to exchange control regulations allegedly about foreign currency amounting to R19 million.