As investigations into the grand escape of self-proclaimed prophet Shepherd Bushiri and his wife, Mary, continue, more light has been shed on how the fugitives may have made it to Malawi.
The founder of the controversial Enlightened Christian Gathering church is caught up in a diplomatic tussle between two countries. South Africa has initiated the process of extraditing Bushiri to allow justice to proceed in his pending money laundering and fraud case.
Already, his right-hand man and co-accused Willah Mudolo has pleaded not guilty and swore to not follow in the pastor’s footsteps.
Mudolo’s defence, the court heard, is centred around Bushiri as the mastermind behind the illicit movement of billions of rand. The Pretoria Magistrate’s Court is expected to make a ruling on Mudolo’s bail application, on Monday 14 December.
Who helped Bushiri escape South Africa?
With respects to the investigation into the pastor’s escape, the Hawks have made gains in lifting the lid on insiders who were complicit in aiding the fugitives when they slipped past customs and travelled more than 2 789km to Lilongwe.
In a statement published by the investigative unit, it was announced that a high-ranking SAPS official and her husband handed themselves over to authorities on charges of corruption and defeating the ends of justice.
“A 46-year-old brigadier based at the Organised Crime of the Detective Service Head Office and her 50-year-old husband [appeared] this morning in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court following their arrest this morning for corruption and defeating the ends of justice,” the statement read.
It’s believed that a probe into their relations with the fugitives uncovered a transaction of R500 000 that was allegedly paid into their personal accounts by Bushiri.
It’s unclear, at this stage, if this lump sum was in connection with the fugitives’ escape since the Hawks revealed that the matter relates to a case docket that has been open since February this year.
The couple, whose names have not been made public, is expected back in court soon and their appearance will bring about more details into the crafty Bushiri escape.