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Zilwa discovered that Omotoso did not necessarily need to flee to his home country of Nigeria after it emerged in court proceedings that he had several churches established in other countries around the world.
Zilwa found that there was no evidence regarding the defense argument that the case against Omotoso was weak and that the trial had been unreasonably delayed.
Zilwa further dismissed claims that Omotoso’s physical and mental health was at risk while he was detained at the St Albans correctional facility and that he was at increased risk of contracting Covid-19.
“These are the general conditions of many other prisoners and ordinary citizens,” Zilwa said.
After considering all the evidence before him, Zilwa said that he was not convinced that Omotoso had shown exceptional circumstances to be granted bail.
“[Omotoso] once again it has not fulfilled the requirement of the surety, since the responsibility is in [him]Zilwa said.
After denying bail to Omotoso, defense attorney Peter Daubermann immediately filed a request for permission to appeal Zilwa’s decision.
Arguments in the request are expected to be heard Monday afternoon.
Zilwa also ruled that the bail court was not in a position to rule on the request for an investigation into the delay in the trial, which would have to be dealt with by the trial judge, Irma Schoeman.
Omotoso, along with his co-defendant Lusanda Sulani, 37, and Zukiswa Sitho, 29, face 63 main charges and 34 alternative charges, ranging from rape to sexual assault, human trafficking and organized crime.
Omotoso has been in custody since April 2017, while Sulani and Sitho are out on bail of R2,000 each.
His trial was postponed until November 10.
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