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A co-defendant in the Bushiri case requests bail.
- A Zambian man charged in the fraud and money laundering case along with sthe proclaimed elf prophet Shepherd Bushiri and his wife Mary, Is request bail.
- An Internal Affairs official told the court that the man was an “illegal immigrant” and violated immigration laws.
- The State previously informed the court that the Zambian citizen tried to flee the country three times before his arrest.
One of the co-defendants who shares the dock with self-proclaimed prophet Shepherd Bushiri and his wife Mary in Pretoria Magistrates Court is a Zambian citizen who allegedly violated local immigration laws, the court heard on Friday.
Defendant 1, Willie Mudolo, allegedly conducted business in South Africa while in the country on a visitor’s permit, a state witness testified.
“If you were working without a work permit, then you were working in violation of immigration law. That would make it illegal,” said Brendan Adams, an official with the Department of the Interior.
READ | Shepherd, Mary Bushiri posted bail of 200,000 rand each
When asked about the status of the Zambian citizen in South Africa, he replied: “He is currently an illegal immigrant.”
The court also heard that two applications for permanent residence that Mudolo had submitted were rejected.
Mudolo is married to the South African citizen Zethu. They have two kids.
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He, Zethu Mudolo, Landiwe Ntlokwana, as well as Bushiri and his wife are accused of fraud, theft and money laundering involving R102 million.
On Wednesday, Bushiri, his wife, Ntlokwana and Zethu Mudolo were released on bail. Willie Mudolo, however, only requested bail on Friday.
Adams told the court that if the defendant was granted bail and he, for example, stayed with his wife, it would create another crime.
“To be granted bail, then it creates an offense. For example, if you were to please him, help him in any business, you would be violating Immigration Law. You would be indirectly creating a crime,” he testified.
READ | Bushiris are prohibited from using sermons to threaten witnesses as part of bail conditions in fraud cases.
The state, which opposes bail for various reasons, previously told the court that he tried to flee the country three times before being arrested by the Hawks at OR Tambo International Airport on October 17.
But he denies the allegations and told the court in an affidavit that he was traveling on business.
“The State’s claim that I tried to flee is unfounded and unfounded.
“I was traveling to Nigeria to serve business interests. I did not know that I was not allowed to travel,” he said in the affidavit that was read in the file.
He also claimed that it was in the interest of justice for the court to release him on bail and assured that he would not evade trial.
The matter was postponed until November 19 for questioning of Adams.
