City closes in on fugitive pastor’s Johannesburg home

The City of Johannesburg (COJ) has started a process that could lead to the auction of fugitive pastor Shepherd Bushiri’s multi-m i l l i o n rand house in Midrand. Sources close to Bushiri’s estate have revealed to City Press that the house – which currently has no occupants – could go under the hammer as the COJ seeks to recoup more than R1m in unpaid municipal services, rates and taxes that the property has accumulated. A source said ‘the house is on the verge of dilapidation, and it has been without occupants since Bushiri fled the country’. The source, who is a member of Bushiri’s church, alleged that the house was subject to various surety agreements struck by the fugitive pastor while he accumulated his wealth through church funds, hotels and investment schemes. City Press has further seen particulars of the claim before the Gauteng High Court (Johannesburg) filed on 3 July, seeking to hold Bushiri accountable for an amount stipulated as $78 000 after the house was left unattended. ‘The amount levied by the COJ is on the market value of the property in accordance with the rates Act. Shepherd Bushiri breached his legal duty by failing to pay. He is not exempt from paying levies and taxes,’ read the document. Bushiri made headlines in November 2021 when he and his wife Mary fled to Malawi after he was granted bail by the Pretoria Magistrate's Court. He was facing charges of money laundering and fraud and was accused of orchestrating a Ponzi scheme which allegedly targeted pension funds.

Full City Press report