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By Jonisayi Maromo 
22h ago
Pretoria – Charismatic Malawian preacher Shepherd Bushiri, who is wanted by South African law enforcement agencies and courts, said on Monday the additional arrest warrants issued on rape charges were part of a conspiracy against him.
“I am not shocked or surprised that the media reports arrest warrants because they are just part of the larger crusade to try to pursue my name in the media by a team of the same white cops, especially the Hawks,” he said. Bushiri, leader of the popular Church of the Enlightened Christian Gathering.
“For the record, it is trite that when an arrest warrant is issued, law enforcement agencies proceed to make the arrest; not to leak information to the media as has always been my case with these white policemen ”.
The additional arrest warrants are for different rape charges registered with the South African Police Service in 2018 and another registered in 2020.
In August, Bushiri’s accusers were interviewed by the eNCA television news channel. The women, whose identities were hidden, claimed they were members of the congregation at the time they were brought to the attention of Bushiri and were raped in a Pretoria hotel.
Bushiri has maintained that the women were trying to extort money from him. He said police officers also participated in the extortion.
“These are white policemen against whom I opened extortion and corruption cases in 2018 after they tried, unsuccessfully, to extort some R10 million from me. At the time, they were clear and consistent saying that ‘failure to pay the 10 million rand would result in immediate retaliation,’ “the self-proclaimed prophet said.
“Despite confirming the opening of such cases, the South African authorities have not taken any relevant steps to bring these white policemen. Instead, these officers were released, supported by state resources, and embarked on a crusade to cover up their crimes by launching and issuing numerous arrest warrants against me. “
Bushiri said the same “white policemen” arrested him in February 2019.
“As if that were not enough, they are again the same white policemen who arrested me in October 2020 and, again, without any official confirmation I bet they are the same policemen. I have been informed, advice that I accept, that rape cases are not handled by Hawks, but by the designated unit of the South African Police (SAPS) known as Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Crimes (FCS), ”Bushiri said.
“I had filed complaints about how the Hawks were recruiting girls to fabricate rape charges and to date they have not forgiven me. Some of these were confirmed through various videos of those who returned to confess such illicit conduct.
Bushiri lamented that as long as the Hawks officers pursuing him were on his case, he would not get a fair trial in South Africa “because those white officers are surely and obviously motivated by revenge, not justice.”
The cleric, who has fled South Africa back to his native Malawi, denied the rape allegations.
“Above all, as a revered man of God, a husband and father who understands that rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything I am and believe in. As eager as I am to clear my name, I unequivocally refuse to feed the media spectacle created by white cops who leaned in to cover up their crimes. My conscience is very clear and will remain so, ”he said.
Bushiri and his wife Mary fled the country after the Pretoria Magistrates Court granted them bail of 200,000 rand each on charges of fraud, theft and money laundering. For that escape, the Pretoria court has previously issued arrest warrants.
African News Agency (ANA)
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