Malawi pastor fraud case in court today

Fugitive Malawian pastor Shepherd Bushiri, his wife Mary and seven accomplices allegedly laundered at least $4.1m. If the current indictment against them is not amended, the Bushiris and their accomplices are facing at least 350 counts, ranging from fraud to money laundering and racketeering. City Press reports that the accomplices include foreign nationals Willah Mudolo and his wife Zethu Mudolo, Landiwe Sindani, Nomalarvasagie Reddy, Sateesh Issery, Stephanie Olivier and Rising Estates. Following years of intensive investigation into the Bushiri empire by the Hawks – the National Prosecuting Authority in SA last week finally secured a sitting which will see some of the suspects have their day in court. The case started with an application for separation of trial, which Justice John Holland-Muter granted, setting aside a month for the trial hearing. The state intends to call at least 43 witnesses to the stand when the trial starts. During the proceedings at the Gauteng High Court (Pretoria) on Friday, Holland-Muter said the matter was to proceed on trial from today until 22 November. ‘I had a discussion with the Judge President (and it was agreed) that, if the matter is not finalised, we will arrange dates on the empty roster for the first quarter of 2025,’ he said.

The indictment is expected to be amended, if the state excludes some offences that may be linked to the Bushiris, pending their extradition to SA. If the state gets its way, it will reveal that the Bushiris’ alleged Ponzi scheme extended to the US. In the current indictment, which City Press has obtained, senior prosecutor Desire Rosenblatt alleges that, between February 2017 and March 2019, the accused received or retained property derived directly or indirectly from a pattern of racketeering, which included planned, ongoing and repeated involvement in fraud. The indictment reads: The primary purpose of the ‘enterprise’ was to enrich the members and associates thereof by creating and promoting an investment scheme under the name of Shepherd Bushiri Trading Platform, also referred to as SBI Consortium, SB Commodities Trading Investment Programme and SB Trading Platform Millionaires Club. The members and associates used the revered status of accused No 4 as a self-proclaimed ‘prophet’ and the respected leader of the Enlightened Christian Church ... to promote the investment scheme to the congregants of the said ECG Church and other interested parties. According to the indictment, members of the ‘enterprise’ presented seminars and meetings where the investment scheme was explained as relating to commodity and foreign exchange trading.

Full City Press report