Malawian authorities were quick to stop self-proclaimed prophet and fugitive Shepherd Bushiri and his family from boarding a private jet to Kenya, this past weekend.
Walls are closing in on fugitive Bushiri
As reported by IOL News, the 38-year-old almost pulled off a second grand escape but customs officials at Kamuzu International Airport were quick to intercept his family from jetting off to Kenya where it is said he’ll be granted asylum.
In the flight, authorities found Bushiri’s two daughters Israella and Raphaella, his mother-in-law Magdalena Zgambo and another relative of the fugitive priest, Esther.
The power couple, Bushiri and his wife Mary, it’s understood, were not on the flight. Neither were they at their home when Malawian police went looking for them.
Flee attempt bears similarities to his escape from SA
According to an attorney representing the family, Malawian authorities acted hastily in intercepting the family’s chartered private jet since their urgent flight to Kenya was a medical emergency.
It is not said which of Bushiri’s daughter was in need of medical attention but, according to the lawyer, this was the chief reason behind the family’s trip to Kenya.
The Bushiris were also said to be at hospital at the time police went looking for them. Interestingly, however, the cross-border movements of the family bear the markings of their grand escape from South Africa in November 2020.
You will remember that the country’s Home Affairs Department came under fire after the fugitive priest and his family slipped under the noses of authorities into Malawi after they had posted bail worth a cumulative R400 000.
It was later discovered that Bushiri’s immediate family — his daughters and mother-in-law — was the first to leave South Africa, before the self-proclaimed prophet and his wife followed.
The investigation into his escape is still the subject of an investigation that has, thus far, seen the arrest of a top SAPS official. South Africa is also in the midst of finalising the extradition of Bushiri.